The Truth Beneath the Rose
by scarlett2112
Summary: For NTSB Investigator, Damon Salvatore, the case of Flight 1042 was open and shut. Or so he thought until he finds himself staring at the business end of a loaded weapon and the big brown eyes of the woman wielding it.
1. Chapter 1

**_Happy Birthday, Eva._**

* * *

 _After finishing serving drinks, the flight attendant starts to put the cart away. Once it's done, she looks at her watch, it's 3:52 p.m. central standard time. As she looks out over the passengers, for whatever reason, she notices a woman and two boys, one of whom is pretty young. The little boy is sitting by the window, staring intently out of it, likely looking at the clouds and ground below. Smiling, she looks around some more, her heart melting a little when she sees a young couple in the midst of a kiss. To their left is an older couple, looking just as much in love with each other as the younger one. Her reverie is broken by the sound of a baby crying. Walking down the aisle, she pauses to ask the mother if there's anything she can do to help. When the young mother points to the overhead storage container, she nods. Opening it, she finds the bag and pulls out the baby blanket, handing it to the woman before securing the hatch again. A little over an hour into the flight, she starts to walk back towards the cockpit when suddenly the plane lurches violently when the cabin is rocked by an explosion._

 _It's so loud that it's indescribable and it fills not only the young boy but all of the passengers with fear. Almost immediately, it starts to make funny noises. The plane then rolls out and lines up with Runway 22 as 369,000 pounds of flesh and metal hurtle nearly 250 miles per hour towards the earth without any way to stop it. In the final seconds of the flight, there is intense fear that the tires will explode upon impact._

 _The thing that strikes her mind is... "I'm going to die this afternoon." The only question that remains is how long is it going to take for death to claim her? And then she clutches her stomach, understanding dawning on her that she has 296 lives literally in her hands. After the captain's announcement that they're going to attempt an emergency landing, as calmly as she can, she goes over the crash procedure with the passengers. Before she can buckle herself in, "Brace, Brace, Brace" comes over the intercom and almost like a breeze blowing over a wheat field, everyone, row by row drops below the level of their seats in an effort to protect themselves._

 _Suddenly there's the sound of grinding and twisting metal when the right wing hits the ground first and is sheered off of the plane. Feeling it bounce and tip and then pole vault up on its nose, everything becomes a blur. And then amazingly, the entire tail of the airplane breaks off and departs. As the plane rolls up onto its nose, a great aperture opens where the tail had been and now angles across an arc of intense blue sky that shockingly points directly at the high summer sun. Blinded by the pure shaft of sunlight streaming down the aisles, saturating the covers and giving the scene a surreal appearance, she raises her hand to protect her eyes. As the light floods the cabin, illuminating it, people who were still strapped to their seats had been torn free and sent tumbling onto the runway. Some of the banks of seats are thrown high into the air far above the fuselage as if shot from a cannon by the centrifugal force as the aft end of the fuselage swings in a majestic, flaming arc. As the plane continues its balletic like progress, the breached fuselage sweeps past the sun and the cabin goes dim once more. With her breaths coming farther and farther apart, in her delirium she notices a shadow, maybe it's death she thinks to herself just as her eyes fall closed for the final time._

 _The plane is breaking up, things are coming apart all around and people are screaming and once again the certainty of how this life would end comes into sharp focus. Laying underneath the wreckage, the pilot can feel the life drain out of him as the weight of twisted steel lays on top of his diaphragm. Looking around, he sees spots in front of his eyes. And suddenly there's an ethereal like apparition telling him not to panic, if he panics, he won't be able to get out. There's a huge rush of air and dirt and gravel and it's then that he realizes that he's still alive although barely. A torrent of hot air and sharp grit-like shattered glass lashes at his face and with not enough time to think, his life flashes before him and then it blissfully ends, blacked out forever by the grace of God._

Waking up in a cold sweat, Damon rakes his hands through his hair. Dragging himself out of bed, he goes into the bathroom to take a drink and splash a little water on his face. During the course of his career as an NTSB investigator, he's seen too much devastation, too many lives ended and too many families left behind to grieve. Each time he investigates another one, the nightmares return. After using the bathroom, he tries to go back to sleep but all he does is toss and turn and dream some more. Glancing at the clock, he sees it's nearly six in the morning. Getting up again, his eyes drift to the top of his dresser. After several seconds, he swallows thickly and goes about his business.

After showering and getting ready, Damon fills his travel mug, grabs his keys and runs outside. Jumping into his car, he drives to his office. Although The National Transportation and Safety Board is located in Washington DC, there is a regional office located here in Denver. Ever since he was a little boy, he has been fascinated by the science of flight and in determining the factors leading up to and causes of plane crashes. A voracious reader, he read absolutely everything, every book, every article, every internet clipping on plane crashes. He'd find himself glued to the TV when one would occur, watching, listening and learning along with every one else.

In that particular accident, The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause was inadequate consideration given to human factors limitations in the inspection and quality control procedures used by United Airlines' engine overhaul facility which resulted in the failure to detect a fatigue crack originating from a previously undetected metallurgical defect located in a critical area of the stage 1 fan disk. The subsequent catastrophic disintegration of the disk resulted in the liberation of debris in a pattern of distribution and with energy levels that exceeded the level of protection provided by design features of the hydraulic systems that operate the DC-10's flight controls.

As he makes his way through the Denver traffic and since it's early yet, he decides to run by and see his dad. After exiting onto Colorado Boulevard, he switches on the blue tooth and calls his office, letting them know that he'll be a little late. Once he's given the okay, he continues down the road till he reaches the turn off to the zoo and museum. Making the left turn, he drives around a bit till he finds a parking spot. Jumping out, he locks his car and starts walking towards the entrance. Recognized by the girl in the ticket booth, she lets him through when he shows her his season pass. Nodding, he walks through the rotating bars and heads to the zoo offices. His father, Matt Salvatore is the curator of the Denver Zoo. Damon worked here all through high school and still loves to visit the animals, many of which are still alive. Stepping into the administration building, he greets the secretary and then takes the stairs up to his dad's office. As soon as he reaches it, he raps on the door while pushing it open.

"Damon, this is a nice surprise," Matt says, standing up to greet his son. After giving him a hug, Damon drops into the chair in front of his father's desk. "So what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I thought that maybe we could get a cup of coffee or something. And besides that, I haven't seen you since I got back to town."

"I suppose it was different, working a plane crash in a foreign country?"

"It was and their investigators were a lot of help quite honestly. But I wish I could've done more. After I did everything that I was allowed to do, I called Liz and as you know, she told me to come home. How's she?" Damon asks, speaking of his father's girlfriend. His father and Liz have been together since Damon and Caroline were around twelve years old. Although they've never married, they moved in together about a year after they started dating. And as a result, Damon not only got a mother figure, he also got a sister in Caroline. Of course, as siblings do, they fought plenty but when push came to shove, they've always had each other's backs.

"She's good. Caroline just got back from her trip to New York so she's spending time with her today. I thought maybe the four of us could get together for a meal or something?"

"Sure... speaking of Caroline, she's been kind of under the radar. I haven't heard from her in a while either."

"Like I said, she was in New York. I'm certain that Liz told her that you were out of the country."

"You're right. But listen, let's go get something to eat because I need to get to the office."

"Sounds good," Matt says, standing up, he motions for Damon to lead the way. They walk onto the zoo property, stopping to visit the lowland Gorilla exhibit. Damon used to feed the animals and help clean their pens among other things that he did when he worked here. Once they reach one of the concession areas, they order coffee and sit down to watch the crowd.

"They have no idea that the zoo's Big Kahuna is right in front of them," Damon chuckles, taking a swallow of his coffee. Once they finish eating, they pause at the Grizzly bear exhibit before he walks his dad back to his office. After saying goodbye, Damon hurries back out to his car to drive to his office on Oakland street here in Denver. As soon as he steps into the suite housing the NTSB offices, he says good morning to their secretary, Andie Starr and then walks into his office. Before he even has a chance to sit down, his boss and step mother for all intents and purposes, walks inside and turns on the TV. The networks are all running with the pictures of the plane crash, the wreckage still smoldering. Flames are billowing into the sky as firefighters try to get a handle on it. Looking at the debris and the wreckage, Damon's stomach twists when he realizes that it's highly likely that there are no survivors.

"Flight 1042 out of Phoenix."

"Pilot?" Damon asks, not taking his eyes from the TV.

"Captain Grayson Gilbert, impeccable safety record."

Walking over to his desk, he fires up his computer to look up whatever information he can find on the man. "Twenty five hundred hours of flying time, well experienced, married with one daughter," Damon mentions. Clicking further, he sees a picture of Capt. Gilbert and his daughter, both smiling. Although his attention is on the TV and the immediate aftermath of the crash, he can't help but steal an occasional glance at the young woman in picture, looking at the small print, he sees that her name is Elena, Elena Gilbert.

* * *

 _It seems that plane crashes rarely have survivors. I did some research into witness, survivor's accounts. Some of the sounds and descriptions are taken from their stories of what it's like to be inside of a plane during it's final moments. We were even able to consult with a real pilot to ask him some questions to try to make this as accurate as possible._

 _Huge, huge thank you to Eva for helping me. I love you dearly._

 _Chapter title: 'How It Ends' by Devotchka._

 _I did update "Phoenix Rising" Tuesday and "ICEM" will update later this week._

 _Please remember to click the review button and let me know what you think._

 _Have a safe and wonderful day._


	2. Aces High

Having spent the day going over some details and specs on last months single engine plane crash near Boulder, Damon leans back in this chair and stretches his arms above his head. It's been a busy week at the office but still nothing definitive on this crash he's been working on. Sighing heavily, he pushes his chair away from his desk and stands up. Glad that it's finally Friday, he grabs his briefcase. After dropping his files in it, he picks it up and walk out of his office, making sure to lock the door behind him.

Once he gets home, he drops his case on the kitchen table and pulls a bottle of cold beer out of the refrigerator. Twisting off the cap, he takes a long pull from the bottle, savoring the taste as it goes. Wiping the sweat off of his brow, he leans back against the counter and just closes his eyes for a few minutes. When he hears a knock on his front door, he drops his chin to his chest in frustration. Pausing to take one more deep swallow from his beer bottle, he sets it down and goes to see who's here. Pulling it open, he doesn't even have a chance to say hi before she's pushing her way into the house.

"Hello to you too, Caroline," he says, pushing the door closed.

"Sorry, brother," she teases, pinching his cheek.

Reaching up to rub the sting out, he raises an eyebrow at her. "What's got you so giddy?"

"I was wondering," she starts to say, looking a little guiltily at him, she continues, "I thought maybe you might want to show a girl a good time?"

Again he drops his chin to his chest. After several seconds he raises his eyes, "Why must you always set me up? I don't have any problems getting a date. I know that you know that and besides, I just broke up with Andie and I don't want to get roped into another relationship," he mentions, quirking an eyebrow at her.

"I realize that you just broke up with the she witch and I, for one, am very glad you finally saw her for who she is and besides that, I'm not suggesting that you start a relationship with her, it's one date, Damon, and Rose is cute."

"And if I say no...?"

"You won't... though... will you?"

"Care, come on. I honestly wanted to stay home Friday night. I'm tired, I just got back to town a couple of days ago. There's a case that I'm tied up with."

"Oh stop whining. You'll like Rose, I promise."

"Promise me one thing?"

"Go on?"

"If I don't like her, you're going to have to smooth it over when I take a beat."

"You can't take a beat. If you never want to see her again, that's fine but you have to at least spend the evening with her."

"Caroline?" he laments, shaking his head back and forth.

"Stop it. If you don't have fun, I'll never set you up again. Deal?"

Damon stares at her intently for a few moments before adding, "Cross you heart."

Rolling her eyes, Caroline crosses her heart, links her arm with his and leads him into the living room. Plopping down on the couch beside him, she picks up the remote and turns on the TV. "Do you have anything to drink in the fridge?"

"Yeah, there's some beer."

"Find a movie and I'll go get us something to eat."

Nodding, he picks it up and scrolls through the channel. Hearing a ruckus in the kitchen, he starts to get up to see what she's doing but just as he's about to push himself off of the couch, she's back. He takes the tray of meat, cheese and crackers from her, setting it down on the end table. After handing him a bottle of beer, she plops down beside him. Putting their feet up, she snuggles in next to her brother. Finally relaxing, Damon settles in to watch _'Suspicion'_ allowing him to forget about all of his other cares for a couple of hours.

* * *

Walking into the bar, he looks around, smiling when he sees Caroline waving at him. Accidentally bumping into his cop friend, Brady on the way to the booth, he visits with him for a few minutes. After making arrangements to get together with him, Damon says goodbye and joins the group that Caroline has gathered for the evening. Seeing the gal with the mousey like haircut, he has to admit she's cute.

"Damon, this is my friend Rose. Rose, Damon," she says, introducing them. As soon as he slides in beside her, Caroline pours him a mug full of beer. Picking it up, he takes a swallow. Glancing at the woman beside him, he eyes her appreciatively, a smile forming on his face.

"So Damon, what do you do for a living?" she asks, taking a swallow from her own mug.

"I work for the National Transportation and Safety Board. I investigate airplane crashes."

"That must be a tough job?"

"It can be, often there are very few, if any survivors of plane crashes. But it's important to determine the causative factors to prevent them from happening again," Damon admits solemnly. Clutching his mug, he glances up at Caroline. As the evening wears on, Damon will admit that the girl is nice enough but for whatever reason, he doesn't feel even the least bit attracted to her. But rather than endure the wrath of Caroline, he puts a smile on his face and engages in conversation with Rose. Needing to stretch his legs, he excuses himself to use the men's room.

After finishing his business, Damon stops at the bar to spend a little more time with Brady. He knows the man from having worked with him on a couple of his cases. He's glad to have police presence because they'll never know what they're going to find when they begin an investigation. Many people still believe that TWA Flight 800 was brought down by a missile rather than the explosion in the center fuel tank. "Can I buy you a drink, Brady?"

"Sure," Brady agrees, nodding when the bartender slides a mug of beer in front of him and Damon. "So how can I help you, Damon?"

"I was wondering if your guys found anything on the train crash?"

"We're still looking at things. We haven't found anything out of the ordinary yet. What about you?"

"I'm still analyzing the data but something is gnawing at me, I just can't put my finger on it yet," Damon adds, raising his glass. Out of the corner of his eye, he happens to see Bill Forbes. Spinning in his seat to watch him for a few minutes, Damon rolls his eyes. Feeling the intense need to wash the bad taste out of his mouth, he takes a swallow from his drink. He loathes Bill for walking out on Caroline when she was young. Somehow, he manages to keep his mouth shut for her sake though. He cares about her and he doesn't want to drive a wedge between them over someone like him. Turning back to Brady the two of them talk about other things and Damon has to admit that he's enjoyed visiting with Brady much more so than he did with Rose. Once he finishes his beer, he shakes Brady's hand and walks back to his booth only to see Bill sitting in his spot.

"Bill?"

"Hello, Damon. Am I in your spot?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I just walked back over to say goodnight. I have a headache so I'm going home. I'll talk to you soon, Caroline," he says, giving her a nod before turning to his date. "It was nice meeting you, Rose. Goodnight now." Before she or Caroline can say a word, he turns on his heels and walks out of the bar and over to his car. Jumping in, he drives home, relieved to be done with the date. After locking up his house, he runs upstairs and gets ready for bed, crawling under the covers as soon as he finishes his shower. With his mind blissfully blank, his eyes succumb to slumber in no time at all.

* * *

Feeling the sun beating down on his face, Damon squints his eyes shut then rolls over onto his side, burying his face in his pillow. Although he'd love to lay all day, he takes a deep breath and drags himself out of bed. Stumbling over to the bathroom, he slips off his boxers and steps into the shower. Pressing his palms against the shower wall, he hangs his head and closes his eyes, letting the hot water pummel his tight muscles. When the water starts to turn cold, he turns if off and steps out. Cinching a towel around his waist, he brushes his teeth and combs his hair. After dressing, he runs downstairs to make himself some coffee. When his eyes drift to the picture on the refrigerator, he thinks that maybe he should go to visit his mom and brother but decides against it.

Filling his travel mug, he heads out to his car. Jumping inside, he buckles his seatbelt and then drives towards the zoo. Once he parks the car, he slips on his season pass and goes through the gate and immediately goes over to the big cat compound. Knocking on the caretakers door, he smiles when he sees his buddy, Bonnie. Both she and her husband Enzo worked here with Damon when they were all in high school but they chose to make this their career whereas Damon chose a different route. Still friends, they get together when they can for a few beers or to go to a Rockies baseball game.

"What are you doing here?" Bonnie asks, stepping aside so he can walk in.

"I needed some down time. I was hoping I could help out with the animals."

"You know you're always welcome here. I'm sure you still know how to prepare their diets?"

"I do indeed. Lead the way," he says, following her to where they keep the dietary items. Many animals, especially the more exotic breeds, eat only certain foods; for example, koalas eat only the leaves of eucalyptus trees. In addition to preparing the animals' meals, he'll help to feed the animals, which can be a complicated undertaking. Some can be fed only in the daytime while others must be fed at night. The animals must be fed every day, so when Damon is in town or is in need of a time out, he frequently shows up to work on weekends and holidays. His responsibilities also include watering, bathing, and exercising the animals, and cleaning, disinfecting, and repairing their cages or tanks. Because zookeepers spend so much time with the animals, they can provide zoo managers with valuable information on animal behavior, interactions, health concerns, environmental factors, and conservation efforts. Keepers must be well informed so they can answer questions from zoo visitors.

Once he has their foods ready, he helps her to feed the animals. Afterwards, they make their way to the primate areas. Staring at them from behind the scenes, Damon has always been enthralled by the whole zoo but he's always loved the gorillas. Even before his father was promoted curator, he would come here often with his mom. They're wonderful memories that he'll never forget. At the end of the afternoon, he, Bonnie and Enzo go to the zoo's café to have something cold to drink. After a long but good day, he says goodbye and drives home. When he sees Caroline's car in his driveway, he sighs heavily, knowing that she's probably going to give him grief for bugging out on his date with Rose. Pulling into his driveway, he pushes the garage door opener, pressing the gas pedal, stopping only when he is inside of the garage. He pushes the door closed again and then gets out of his car and goes into the house.

"Caroline?" he says, pulling a cold bottle of water out of his refrigerator. When she starts to open her mouth, he raises his palm. "If you're here to chew me out about Rose, I don't want to hear it."

"Actually, that's not why I'm here."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I came to apologize. I shouldn't have set you up with her. I knew right away that you two weren't going to jibe and I think she saw it too."

"She did? What did she say?"

"She could sense that you weren't interested. She has eyes, Damon."

"I didn't intend to be rude and yes she was a nice person. I'm just not interested in any girl right now, Care."

"Is it Andie? Were you really that crazy about her?"

"No, we've been drifting apart for a long time but I guess, I just didn't like admitting to the failure of our relationship. We were together for over a year."

"But neither of you ever seemed really serious. I mean, you never even moved in together."

"I guess my heart knew what my head didn't but still, I just don't want to start anything new right now."

"Okay then. Now that we have that settled, do you want to go to a movie with me?"

"What's playing?"

"Star Wars: Rogue One," she tells him knowing that he is a Star Wars fanatic.

"I would love to see it with you. Just let me go upstairs and change clothes. I was at the zoo with Enzo and Bonnie all day."

"Talking to the animals?"

"I was indeed, Caroline," he laughs, giving her a wink before disappearing through the kitchen door.

* * *

Looking out of his office window, he sees it's getting dark outside. Glancing at the wall clock, he does a double take when he sees how late it is already. Getting up, he pours himself a cup of coffee knowing he'll be at his office for a little while yet. After sitting back down, he opens the book again. Turning back to the page he was on, he loses track of time again. Hearing a knock on the door, he looks up, taken aback when he sees Andie standing there.

"Andie?"

"Hi, Damon. I saw that your car was still outside. I just thought I'd say hi."

"Wow, this is the last thing I expected," he admits, putting his book down. "Is there a reason you came by?"

"Yes and no. I wanted to tell you that I'm engaged."

"You're engaged?" he asks incredulously. "We only broke up a couple of months ago?"

"I'm pregnant, Damon. He wants the baby and he wants to be with me. You were never going to take that step with me."

"You're pregnant...?" Too stunned to speak, he finally swallows past the lump in his throat and blurts out the words, "Is it mine?"

"No, Damon, it's not. I started seeing Logan about two months before we broke up."

"So you cheated on me!? Really Andie? Why did I need to know this now?"

"I wanted to be the one to tell you. I'll just let myself out," she says, staring at him guiltily.

"I think that's a good idea." She nods and then disappears. Not knowing what to think, he drops his head into his hands. It dawns on him that he never really knew her at all. Although he can admit that they were growing apart for some time before they ended it officially, he never would've cheated on her. Stunned, he picks up his book again but finds himself unable to focus on it after her bombshell. Getting up, he puts it back into the top drawer and then walks out of his office, making sure his door is locked when he leaves. It's dark outside and Damon pauses for a moment to look at the night sky. It's clear and full of stars. Walking around to the back of the building where his car is parked, he pulls his keys out of his pocket. Just as he's about to stick the key in the lock, he feels a sharp pain to the back of his head. With white spots beginning to dance behind his eyes, the last thing he sees clearly before blacking out completely is the barrel of a gun reflected in his side view mirror.

* * *

Groaning, Damon grimaces in pain as he starts to come to. With bleary eyes, he looks around at his surroundings. It's dark and dank smelling. Feeling the sting in his wrists, he tries to lift his arm but swears when he realizes that his hands are tied. Having no idea why someone would kidnap him, he's at a loss. Hearing a creaking noise, he looks up, seeing the silhouette of a woman, judging by her curves. "Why am I here?" Damon spits out, moaning again when he feels his head start to throb. Dropping his head onto the back of the chair, he struggles against the ropes that are holding him captive. "Who are you? Why am I here?" he repeats angrily, focusing on the girl's outline.

"I have my reasons," she retorts.

"That doesn't tell me anything. I need to take a piss," he tells her truthfully.

She stares at him for a long moment before picking up a bucket and walking over to him. While she works to free one of his arms, he stares at her intently. Although he senses familiarity, he can't quite place her. He's certain that he'd remember if he'd run across her before, she's gorgeous, he thinks to himself. As soon as he finishes, she takes the bucket from him. Only now seeing the pistol in her back pocket, he swallows thickly. "Who. Are. You?"

"That's for me to know and for you to dot. dot. dot," she snaps, using her hand to gesticulate the dots.

Getting more agitated by the moment, he spits out, "If you're going to kill me, don't I at least deserve to know why?"

Without saying anything, she hands him something to eat. He stares at her for several moments before he sets the plate on his lap. Just as he's about to take a bite he stops and stares at the piece of pizza.

"I can assure you that it's not tainted," the girl says, crossing her arms over her chest. Not looking up, he finally takes a bite and then takes a drink from the water bottle that she offers him. As soon as he finishes, he tosses the plate on the floor, the shattered glass scattering haphazardly across the room. Feeling the sting of glass in his legs, he bites back a grimace and stares at her. He can see that she's incensed by the look on her face when she picks up a broom and dustpan and then cleans up his mess.

"I demand to know why you're keeping me here," Damon asks angrily. With his free hand, he works quickly to try to free his other hand. Seeing what he's up to, she sets the broom down. Although he tries to fight her, the woman is strong herself, subduing him in a few minutes. Feeling his anger reach def con ten, he spits in her face when she starts to pull away from him. Wiping it off, she raises her hand as if to slap him but somehow she restrains herself.

"We'll talk later," she sneers, her breasts heaving in anger.

Mesmerized by the sight, Damon stares at her voluptuous bosom. When he hears a crack of thunder, he snaps out of it. "I don't want to talk later, I want to know now," he snaps, feeling his heart hammering against his chest wall.

Turning around, she takes a deep breath and says firmly and with resolve, "I told you that we would talk tomorrow." Without saying another word, she turns away and walks to the staircase. At the same time she puts a foot on the top step, it dawns on him who she is. Before she disappears, he screams, "I want to know why I'm here, _Miss Gilbert_?" Stopping in her tracks, she turns to face him, her eyes widen in shock as they meet his from across the room. A few seconds pass before she disappears up the stairs without uttering a word. With the slamming of a door, it's the last he sees of her on this night.

* * *

 _Huge thanks to you, Eva. You are priceless._

 _Huge thank you to all of you as well. You are the best audience ever._

 _Chapter title: 'Aces High' by Iron Maiden._

 _PR updated yesterday, ICEM will update later in the week._

 _Be safe and have a wonderful day. Bye now._


	3. What I've Done

"Ergh," Damon groans as he starts to awaken the next morning. With his head throbbing like a jackhammer vibrating against his temples, Damon is next to certain that she drugged him. It's not just his head, his whole body is rebelling against his restraints. Trying to straighten himself up in the chair, he groans as his muscles jerk and spasm in response. Trying to shake himself out of his stupor, he looks around his basement prison. He sees only one tiny window but knows he'd never fit through it. He does know that he has to be in the Denver vicinity because he doesn't think he was unconscious all that long after she knocked him out cold. Throwing his head back, he grimaces when his neck muscles bite at him too. Raising himself up, he gazes intently at the staircase when he hears footsteps and the creaking sound of the stairs as she comes down them.

As soon as he sees her walking out of the darkness and into the little bit of sunlight that streams through the one window, he's almost mesmerized. Hearing the chair legs dragging along the concrete floor grabs Damon's attention. Dropping his head for a few seconds, he fixates on her red toenail polish. When she starts to speak, he slowly raises his aching head.

"How do you know who I am?" she asks, her hands clasped together in her lap.

Snorting, he can't stop the laugh that escapes from his mouth. "Oh honey, that's not how it works. I'll share if you'll share. Why am I here?"

"I wouldn't get too cocky if I were you, Mr. Salvatore," she cautions, reaching behind her to pull the revolver out of what he assumes was her back pocket. Although she's running her fingertips over the black metal, she doesn't take her eyes from his.

Darting his own back and forth from her face to the weapon and back to her eyes, he tries to tamper down his irritation a little bit. Despite her tiny frame, she does have firepower and Damon decides it's better to play nice and live to see another day than to provoke her unnecessarily. "Whatever you say, Elena," he says, licking his parched lips. "Can I at least have a drink of water?"

After staring at him for a few minutes, she stands up, slides the gun back into her pocket and then disappears up the stairs. Moments later she's back with a bottle of water and a banana. Walking behind him, she frees one of his arms so he can drink it. She peels the banana then hands it to him. Famished, Damon gobbles it down in seconds. "Will you open it?" he asks, using his head to nod at the bottle of water. "It's rather difficult to do one-handed." Picking it up, she twists the top and then hands it back to him. Before he takes a swallow, he looks at her again, "Is this one drugged too?"

"I didn't drug you, Mr. Salvatore."

"I don't believe you. I don't often wake up with the headache from hell."

"Perhaps it was from me smacking you on the back of the head."

"Perhaps it was," he mumbles, finally taking a drink.

"Now, why don't we chat a bit?" she says, sitting back down in the chair.

"Sure, what should we talk about?" he asks, running his tongue along his lower lip.

"All right, I'll start first.. You made a horrible mistake when you labeled my father's crash as pilot error."

"Your father?" Damon asks, knowing full well who he is.

"Captain Grayson Gilbert, Flight 1042... sound familiar?"

"Yes, Elena, I remember it well."

"My father was an excellent pilot. He was not to blame for the accident."

"Just because he was an excellent pilot doesn't mean he's incapable of making a mistake," Damon says firmly. "What exactly is it that you want from me?"

"And just because a "know it all investigator" thinks he has all the answers doesn't mean he's incapable of making a mistake either," she snaps back at him. Getting agitated, she gets up and starts pacing back and forth in the basement. "I want you to go over the evidence again. I know my father and how painstakingly careful he was. I know this accident wasn't his fault."

"You do realize that kidnapping is a federal offense don't you? You're risking going to jail for a very long time.. Why?"

"I have my reasons," she replies cryptically, raking her fingers through her long brown tresses.

"This is obviously very important to you.. why didn't you come to me when the investigation was still underway?"

"After the funerals, I was out of the country. By the time I got home, you had already made up your mind."

"Miss Gilbert, I assure you that I'm a professional and that my integrity is beyond reproach. I go over and over and over the evidence before I finalize my find..," he starts to say when a door slams upstairs. Stopping in her tracks, Elena grabs a rag and covers his mouth, tying it behind his head. Although he tries to keep his arm free, she quickly has him restrained again.

"You keep quiet or I may have to use this," she warns, pressing her hand against the weapon in her back pocket. Her rear end is mighty fine, he thinks, scolding himself when he realizes that he has no business thinking about her as anyway but his kidnapper. She gives him one more look before she runs up the stairs. Pulling the basement door shut, she walks into the kitchen where she finds her friend, Nick making himself at home.

"Hey Elena. I just came by to see if you wanted to go to see a Rockies games with me?"

"Not tonight, Nick. I have a bit of a migraine." Not lying, she starts to rub her temples. Walking over to the cupboard, she grabs a couple of Ibuprofen, pops them in her mouth and swallows them down.

"You do look a little pale," he adds, looking at her intently.

"I didn't sleep very well. But listen, I need to run over to check on my mom."

"Why don't I do that.. then you can rest your weary head," he says, giving her a wink. Her eyes drift to the basement door.

Knowing that she doesn't dare leave him alone, she turns to face her friend again. "Are you sure you don't mind?"

"Of course, I'll go now. I'll stop back later okay?"

"Sure, that would be great," she agrees, walking him to the front door. As soon as he drives away, she hurries back down stairs. His head is hanging, his chin on his chest. He finely looks up. Seeing how miserable he looks, she finds herself feeling bad for the state he's in. Walking over to him, she frees one of his hands again. "Look, I'm sure you're uncomfortable. I'd really like to untie you but I can't take that chance. I need you to reopen your investigation."

"Listen, Elena... I hope you don't mind if I call you that.. If you can give me something, anything that points to your dad's innocence, I'm willing to at least consider it."

"I don't have anything. All I know is that my father would never, ever do anything to put his passengers in any danger. He was steadfast in his attention to detail and safety. You have to believe me," she tells him firmly yet pleadingly. Deciding to chance it, she releases his arms. Disappearing momentarily, she pushes a recliner into the main area of the basement. Starting to untie him, she suddenly hears the door again. Panicking, she pulls her gun out, waving it at him and towards a little room. Nodding he goes inside. It's a little office with books on the shelves and a computer desk and there are windows. Once he's inside, she pulls the door shut, locking it behind her. Hiding the gun on one of the shelves, she hurries back upstairs, taken aback when she sees her mother and Nick waiting for her.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Nick said you don't feel good so I thought we'd bring you something to eat. You do look a little pale, dear."

"I'm fine, momma. It's just a headache."

"What were you doing in the basement?"

"I just threw a load of laundry in."

"Alright then, let's eat," her mom says, holding up the carryout bags. Nick helps her to the table. Elena and Nick take a seat too. Helping herself, she starts to eat and using all of the acting skills she can muster, she tries to play down her anxiety.

* * *

Although Damon knows he could and should try to escape, he's too intrigued. If she's willing to go to these lengths to clear her father's name, she must know something. And he has to admit that he's impressed with her cojones, she has more than a lot of guys he knows. Looking through the books, he sees the author's name, "Katerina Petrova." He knows she's one of Caroline's favorite authors. He thinks she has every one of the woman's rather embarrassing love stories. According to Caroline, she mostly writes historical fiction with her focus on the romance of the lead characters. Damon has to admit, he was a little intrigued with the one about the Culper Spy Ring. Pulling one off the shelf, he opens the cover, only to find her face staring back at him.

Elena Gilbert is Katerina Petrova, Damon thinks to himself and suddenly a whole new feeling of fear begins to burn and heat every cell in his body. The woman is obviously deranged, maybe working on a plot for her next story. Hell, he was even beginning to feel a little sympathetic to her plight but now... Shaking his head, he contemplates her and her motives. If she's willing to open herself up to a long stretch in a federal penitentiary, she must be insane. What the hell did you get yourself into now, Damon? She's a second rate scribbler who seems to enjoy waving the gun at him. If he gets out of here in one piece, he'll consider himself lucky. Because his ankles are still chained, he had to shuffle over to the desk chair. Dazed and confused, he plops himself down. Staring into nothingness, he drops his face into his hands.

Splitting his fingers, he drops his eyes. Laying right in front of him on the desktop is a file with Grayson Gilbert's name on it. Pausing for a moment, he listens for something, anything that would warn of her return. Hearing nothing, he pulls it in front of him and opens it up. Recognizing the NTSB heading on the paper, he knows she must have printed out his report. Not needing to read it again, he looks further into the file. Again, it's nothing he hasn't seen, it's Grayson Gilberts service records. Before he can delve deeper, he feels the cold sting of metal against his temple.

"You don't need to do that, sweetheart," he says, trying to keep the shakiness out of his voice.

"Don't. call. me. sweetheart.," she says firmly but with a deadly lilt to her voice.

"Whatever you say, I just want to get out of here alive," he adds, raising his arms. Thinking that he has designs on her weapon, she steps backwards but keeps her gun trained on him.

"I know what I'm doing with a gun, Mr. Salvatore. My father was in the Air Force, he taught me how to use a gun with deadly precision."

"Like I said, I just want to live to see another day." Knowing that he may regret it but he just can't help himself, he adds, "Is this whole kidnapping thing a scenario for one of your nonsensical romance novels?"

"So you know my professional name? And no, this isn't some cockeyed plot for a novel. This is real life we're talking about. What I want is for you to go over your evidence again and again and again. My father is not responsible for that plane crash."

Beginning to wonder if she is even capable of distinguishing real from make believe, he can only stare at her with his mouth agape.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" she snaps.

"How... how do you know he's not to blame?" Damon snaps, frustration fueling his bluster.

"Because I know. I know a lot about avionics and airplanes and most of all, I knew my father. I don't want to hurt you, Mr. Salvatore, I really don't. I'm not a violent person but this is extremely important to us."

"Who's us?"

"Us? What are you talking about?"

"You just said that this is extremely important to us.. U. S. as in us?"

"That's my business," she adds firmly, getting rather annoyed with him. Pushing his chair away from the desk, she pulls open a drawer and pulls a keyboard. With one push of another button, the large screen TV mounted on the wall facing the desk springs to life. With another few clicks, she has the file keyed up. "Now, look at it, look at my father's record, look at how many commendations he received. It's been a few months, look at it with fresh eyes. Please?"

"Do I have a choice?" he snaps, beyond angry that he's being held captive by a lunatic.

"No, Mr. Salvatore, you don't," she adds. Sticking her weapon back into her rear pocket, she gets behind his chair and pushes it to the desktop. "Are you right or left handed?"

"Right." Without saying a word, she grabs his left arm and snaps a handcuff on his wrist and secures it to the chair frame. Closing his eyes for a moment, he knows that if he's to have any chance of getting away that he'll have to play along.. for now...

* * *

Having looked over her information for hours already, Damon can hardly keep his eyes open. Taking pity on him, Elena pulls a throw pillow off of her couch. "Lift your head," she says softly. When he does she slides the pillow underneath. Although he can lay his head on the desk, she takes his right arm and secures it to a metal ring beneath the desk with another set of handcuffs. Walking over to the couch, she collapses herself. Pulling her weapon out of her pocket, she sets it down on the end table. Despite the fact that he's bound to the desk and chair, she's not willing to take any chances. Dropping her face into her hands, she blows out a puff of air. What has she done, she thinks to herself. If she were to go to prison, what would her mother do? She knows that Nick would take care of her but she hates to place that burden on him. Raising her eyes to him, she just stares for a few moments. Although she's tired, she's also afraid that he may come back so she gets up, grabs the gun and then turns the light out. And after giving him one last long look, she pulls the door shut behind her.

When her alarm goes off, she groggily opens her eyes and looks around her room. Slipping into her jeans, tee shirt and shoes and after pulling a hoodie over her head, she grabs her duffel bag and goes into the kitchen. She makes a pot of coffee and then stares at the clock for a moment. Picking up her things, she takes them outside and stores them in her trunk. It's only four in the morning but Elena knows that she needs to get him out of her house. After filling two large travel mugs with coffee, she runs those out to the car too and then runs downstairs to wake him up. Finding him still asleep, she gives him a nudge, urging him to wake up. Slowly he raises his head and looks around as if in a daze.

"I was hoping this was all a bad dream," he mumbles, dropping his face onto his forearm. "Just let me go and we never have to see each other again."

"No deal," she retorts, freeing first one arm. Using the handcuff, she shackles his hands together and then releases the second one from the chair frame. Shaking his head, he pushes the chair back and stands up, walking out of the room when he feels the barrel of the gun prodding him in the back. With his ankles shackled, it's hard for him to get up the stairs but eventually he makes it. Taking a deep breath, he spins around, hoping that his shoulders will knock her down the steps. However, she must've anticipated his move cause she was ducked out of the way and instead, he tumbled down the stairs. Groaning, he grimaces, his shoulder having become dislocated.

"Why the hell would you do such a stupid thing?" Elena snaps, running down the steps to help him up. "Come on, we have to do something about your shoulder." Stopping in the kitchen, she opens the bottom drawer and pulls out a sling. The same thing happened to her mother once when she had a rather nasty fall. As such, her mother's physical therapy doctor taught her how to push it back into place. She always grabs what's left of her mother's bottle of hydrocodone. Although they're outdated by a few months, Elena thinks they'll probably give him some pain relief. Walking back over to him, she nudges Damon outside. Once he's seated, she tells him to lean forward. After releasing the handcuff from his left arm, she fastens the right one to the metal at the bottle of the seat. As soon as she's certain he can't get away, she helps put the sling on his shoulder.

"I'm going to have to fix that," she points out, nodding at his shoulder before continuing, "When we get to the other place. It's best if you take a pain pill first so it's working before I try to put it back into place."

"How do you know how to fix a dislocated shoulder?" he asks, moaning when he shifts a little bit.

"Because it happened to someone I care about. And that's all you need to know." Opening up the pill bottle, she's about to drop a couple into his mouth when she pauses. His eyes drift from her eyes to her hand and then back again.

"What?"

"Allergies? I don't want you to go into anaphylactic shock on me."

"Sorry, sweets, I'm not going to make it that easy for you to get rid of me. No, I don't have any allergies."

Elena stares a few seconds and drops the pills into his mouth. Picking up the coffee, she places the cup to his lips, pulling it away only when he tilts his head back. Still tired and hurting more than a son of a bitch, Damon drops his head back and lets his eyes drift closed, drifting off to sleep to the sounds of the wheels on the highway.

* * *

By the time she pulls into the long driveway that leads to her private lake house, the sun is just above the horizon in the eastern sky. It's twinkling off of the lake and nearly blinding when Elena turns to look at it. Smiling, she pulls the car to a stop. Her 'guest' is sound asleep so she gets out, quietly closes the door and lifts her bag out of the back seat. Pulling the keys out of her purse, she unlocks it and walks in. After setting the duffel bag down, she goes into the kitchen to see what's in the refrigerator. She asked the caretaker to get it stocked for her. Grateful that it's been done, Elena starts a pot of coffee and then goes back outside to retrieve Damon. Pulling open the car door, she jabs his good arm to wake him up. Jerking upright, he groans in pain having jarred his shoulder. She unlocks the one hand cuff and then helps him into the house and to a bedroom. Once he's laying down, she carefully takes his arm out of the sling and then manipulates his shoulder to a chorus of his painful screams till it's back into place. Not knowing how men got a reputation for being so stoic in the face of pain, she shakes her head at his whimpering. That said, she knows without doubt that he is in pain. Not willing to dwell on it, she, with the utmost of care, helps him put it back into the sling and then offers him a couple more pain pills.

Raising his free hand, he pushes back against air, since she's out of his reach. "Lady, you need help, therapy, a doctor, something. I'm not some fictional character in your next romance story, I'm a living, breathing human being," he snaps, his disdainful stare burning holes right through her.

"Really, I didn't know that. Now swallow these," she says, holding the water glass while he drinks from the straw.

"Where are we?"

"Far away from civilization," she adds. Since she knows he can't really escape, she removes the chains from his ankles and frees his good arm. With that, she raises her eyebrows triumphantly and walks out of the room, pulling the door closed behind her.

Knowing that he's trapped for now, Damon throws himself onto the bed. And despite his anger and frustration and even a little bit of fear, it takes mere moments for sleep to pull him blissfully into the darkness.

* * *

When he wakes up, Damon holds onto his arm to give it some support and then he sits up. Glancing outside, it's still daylight. Needing to pee, he grabs the door handle, dropping his chin to his chest when he finds it locked. Using his good arm, he starts banging on it to get her attention. Mere moments later, she opens it up.

"I need to pee," he tells her, more than a little irritation in his voice.

"Follow me." She leads him down the hall to the bathroom. "Do you need some more pain pills?"

"No, I don't want to go back to sleep. I could use something to eat though. I'm withering away."

"Hardly but come to the kitchen when you finish. I'm sure you can find your way," she adds, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Um, I don't suppose you have any men's clothes so I can shower maybe?"

"I do indeed," Elena affirms. "I'll go get you something to change into." Disappearing into the room across from the bathroom, he watches as she opens a couple of drawers and pulls out a pair of pajama pants and a very large men's tee shirt. Stepping into the bathroom, she sets it down on the top of the toilet and then turns her back long enough to pull a couple of towels out of the linen closet. She hands them to him and then she helps him to take off his sling and shirt. After she turns on the hot water, she steps out, pulling the door shut behind her.

Stepping into the shower, Damon can't deny how good it feels to have the hot water massage his aching muscles. Looking up at the shower head, he decides he's going to have to get one just like it. While gingerly trying to keep his bad arm close to his chest, he tries to scrub himself with the good one. As soon as he finishes washing up, he closes his eyes and lets the water continue to pummel his body into submission. Although he'd like to stay in it for the next hour, he turns the water off and steps out. Drying himself the best he can, he slips on the pair of pajama pants and because the tee shirt is a 3XL, it's easy to slip on over his bad arm first and then over the rest of his upper body. Picking the towel back up, tries to dry his hair a bit. Taking a deep breath, he walks out of the bathroom and then finds her in the kitchen.

Hearing him approach, Elena tells him to sit down. "Here's some Ibuprofen, it shouldn't make you sleepy," she says, dropping four tablets into his hand. Taking them, he swallows them down after she hands him a bottle of water. Sliding a sandwich in front of him, he picks it up and practically inhales it. With her back turned, she starts to make him another one. Seeing her keys on the table, he very sneakily covers them with his napkin. When he finishes the second sandwich, he picks it up and walks outside. Knowing that he really has no place to run to, Elena lets him but keeps an eye on him nonetheless. Turning her attention back to washing the dishes, she happens to look up and sees him running for her car. Pulling the gun out of her back pocket, she runs outside and plants her feet. Raising the gun, she puts her finger on the trigger and cocks the gun. With deadly aim, she pulls on the trigger. And as if in slow motion, a puff of smoke and a loud popping sound slices through the air.

* * *

 _Huge thanks to Eva. Not only is she excellent at bullet points and plots, she's also great at helping me pick songs when I can't find one._

 _Thank you all so much for the great welcome to this story. I say it often but you are all the absolute best._

 _Chapter title: 'What I've Done' by Linkin Park._

 _"PR and ICEM" will update soon._

 _Please remember to review._

 _Be safe and have a fabulous day._


	4. The Bitter Pill

_And as if in slow motion, a puff of smoke and loud popping sound slices through the air._

Feeling a whiff of air, he's stunned speechless when the glass light that's level with his head explodes, sending shards of glass flying. When he can finally talk past the lump in his throat and with his heart slamming chaotically in his chest, he turns around just as she's lowering her weapon. Immediately anger replaces fear, seething rage reaching a fevered pitch inside of him. "What the actual fuck?" he yells, marching towards her. "You could've killed me!"

"I told you that I know what I'm doing with a gun, Mr. Salvatore. Now get back inside," she demands while keeping the pistol trained on him.

Her voice is so eerily calm that it makes the hairs on his neck stand on end. Staring at her but with a look as deadly as her aim, he walks past her and into the house. Shoving the barrel of the weapon into his back, she urges him forward and back into the bedroom. Not entirely uncivilized, she shackles his feet to the railed footboard of the bed but leaves his arms free.

"Don't try that again," Elena warns, waving the gun at him again.

"Lady, you're fucking insane," he sneers, his cold eyes staring daggers at her.

"Is that the best you got, Salvatore?"

"What are you trying to prove by keeping me captive? If I had turned my head, you might have blown my brains out? What the hell is the matter with you?"

"I have told you why you're here. You will stay my prisoner until you do as I ask," Elena snaps, stuffing the gun into her back pocket again.

"My determination was based on the evidence we retrieved at the crash site."

"Your evidence also said that the black boxes, the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder were badly damaged, making them of little value to the investigation. Why is your mind so closed to the possibility that you may be wrong?"

"And why are you so damn sure that he's innocent? You've given me nothing except your gut feeling. What am I supposed to do with that?"

"My father was meticulous about safety procedures. He wouldn't have done anything to put his passengers at risk."

"Not intentionally no, I don't believe he would either. But your father is, I'm sorry was, human just like the rest of us. He made a mistake. You need to learn to accept this and let me go before you make this any worse than it is already. My family is likely wondering where the hell I disappeared to, not to mention my co-workers." Damon watches, certain he may have hit a nerve but rather than snap back at him, she shakes her head and walks out of the bedroom, closing and locking the door behind her.

* * *

Busy in the kitchen getting supper ready, Matt checks on the roast that's in the crockpot. Caroline is joining him and Liz for supper tonight. Damon is in Washington DC for an NTSB conference. He's due back in Denver tomorrow unless he would miss his flight or something. Even though he knows Damon is busy, he can't seem to shake the gnawing feeling that's sitting in the pit of his stomach. He doesn't even know what it stems from. Perhaps it's the fact that Damon hasn't called nor has he answered his phone but then Matt rationalizes it knowing that Damon probably has it turned off while listening to the lecturers.

Picking up the paprika, he sprinkles a dash of it on his roast then replaces the lid. Just as he puts it back in the cupboard, he hears the doorbell ring. He pauses long enough to wipe his hands then goes to answer it. Smiling when he sees Liz and Caroline, he steps aside so they can come in. Liz stops in front of him, dropping a kiss to his lips before following Caroline into the family room. After closing the door, he takes a seat beside Liz on the couch, extending his arm over her shoulders.

"I'm glad you're home, Liz," Matt says, joining their lips in a kiss. "What have you two been up to today?"

"As you very well know, I took a much needed day off. Caroline and I spent the afternoon at Park Meadows," Liz explains, pressing her palm to her newly shorn hair.

"I do like the haircut, sweetheart," Matt adds, giving her a wink and a squeeze.

"Thank you." Smiling, she burrows into his side, much to Caroline's chagrin.

"You two are pathetic," she teases, winking at Matt.

"Why do you say that?" Matt asks, knowing that she's being facetious.

"You're like two teenagers that's why."

"You're just jealous, sweetheart," Liz adds, a giggle escaping her mouth.

"No I'm not. I have no shortage of dates. But Matt, when is Damon coming home from DC?"

"His flight is scheduled to arrive late tomorrow evening. I'm supposed to pick him up at DIA."

"I have a friend but I promised him I wouldn't set him up with anymore blind dates so I need to talk to him about it first."

"I know you love him like a brother but you need to stop. He just broke up with Andie after all... I think he wants to focus on himself for awhile."

"You're right. I'll give him some time."

"Thank you," Matt says, standing up. "I'm going to go to check on supper."

"I'll set the table," Liz says, following him to the kitchen, leaving Caroline alone. Yawning, she covers her mouth then walks over to the fireplace to look at the pictures. Picking up the one of her and Damon when they were around fourteen, she can't help but smile. They were in Rocky Mountain National Park, bundled up and covered with snow from their impromptu snowball fight. Brushing her fingertips over his face, she feels a bit of melancholy because she knows that despite his protestations to the contrary that Andie hurt him badly. Sighing, she puts it down, her fingers lingering on the frame for a few seconds. Hearing her name, she pulls her hand away and then goes to join her mom and Matt in the kitchen.

* * *

Stepping outside, Elena walks down the dirt path to the water's edge. Because cell reception is poor out here, she doesn't try to call her mother. She did text Nick before she left to tell him that she was going to be here for a few days to work on her next novel. Hearing the sounds of a Loon, she looks out over the water, smiling when she sees the birds swimming peacefully amidst some bulrushes. Running her hand through her hair, her skin prickles with goose bumps when a breeze blows off of the lake. Raising her eyes, she uses her hand to shield them from the sun as she looks up. She can see clouds begin to build up. With her gut churning, she turns around and focuses on the second floor window, his window.

A part of her knows he's right, the odds of her going to prison are astronomical given that as he so aptly pointed out that kidnapping is indeed a federal offense. Hell, she could even end up in Leavenworth. What would her mother do then? But then she thinks of her father and the hero that he was, she can't let the manner of his death overshadow every other good thing he's done in his life. He served in the Air Force, the flag that draped his coffin is proudly displayed in her parents house. He received many commendations and his safety record was beyond reproach. How could she as his daughter not try to set the record straight? There's no doubt in her mind that Damon is wrong about the crash but how on earth does she begin to get him to listen to her? Plopping down on the dock, she slips her shoes off and drops her feet into the water, her toes making ripples in it as she wiggles them. Because her mind is consumed with her dad and him and how to make things right for her mother, she doesn't notice that the sky has really darkened. It's only when a sudden gust of wind blows her hair across her face that she realizes that she needs to go inside.

Pausing in the living room, she turns on the TV to see if there's anything, any special report or anything that might indicate that the police or his family is aware that Damon is missing. She watches for sometime but there are no bulletins or newsflashes about him so she clicks it off and goes into the kitchen to get a bottle of water and some pain medication for him. First thing she does is pull the gun out of her pocket. Staring at it for a few seconds, she takes a breath and carefully places it into one of the kitchen drawers. Grabbing the water bottle and pain pills, she trots up the stairs, stopping only when she reaches the door that holds him captive.

* * *

With his ankles still shackled to the bed, Damon has nothing better to do than contemplate his existence as it were. Until she fired that gun, he wouldn't have believed that she was capable of violence but now he can't help but feel a little bit of fear. Knowing that he has to keep his wits about him if he's going to have any shot at making an escape, he can't seem to get rid of the gnawing feeling that she's not right. Believing her to be unhinged, he doesn't know whether to laugh or cry at her pronouncements of her father's innocence.

Since he's supposed to be attending a conference in Washington, his father won't know he's missing till at least tomorrow evening when he doesn't arrive at the airport. What he does know is that he has to try to keep her calm no matter what. But she was deadly calm when she fired that gun at him. Shivering at the thought of the bullet whizzing by his head, Damon jerks against the shackles when he hears footsteps, hers to be exact.

Swallowing thickly, he watches the doorknob turn slowly, each slight turn ratcheting up his heartbeat even faster. When it starts to pound so hard it nearly takes his breath away, he turns away for a moment. The last thing he wants is for her to see his fear. When she steps inside, a lightbulb goes off in his head. If he can somehow convince her to take him back to his office on the ruse they can look over the data together, perhaps he'll have a chance to get away from her.

"I brought you some pain pills for your shoulder. How does it feel?" she asks, leaning over to hand him the bottle of Ibuprofen.

"Do I dare trust you?" he wonders, staring at the bottle.

"I didn't drug you before, I won't now. I haven't a clue as to know how to get that kind of medication, Damon."

"You obviously do. You gave me narcotics before you brought me out here to bum fuck nowhere."

"Those were an old prescription that belonged to my mother. I don't use drugs if that's what you're thinking in that twisted mind of yours," she snaps.

"I'm the one with a twisted mind?" he scoffs, disbelief coursing through his veins igniting his temper all over again.

"You think I have a twisted mind?" she asks, staring at him incredulously.

"I think that you have given me more than enough ammunition to validate my claim."

"Oh please. I'm no more crazy than you are. I just want to clear my father's name."

"I'd be more inclined to believe you if I wasn't shackled to a bed and locked in a room."

"I can't trust you not to escape."

"Where am I going to go? All I see is water and wilderness. Yes, I want to put as much distance between us as I can but I'm not suicidal." Damon can see the uncertainty reflected in her eyes. It's like she's warring with herself. Walking over to the window, she turns her back to him as she looks outside. He breathes a sigh of relief when he sees that her back pocket is devoid of the pistol. Looking past her, he notices that the sky is bluish gray and there looks to be a storm moving in. The next thing he hears is a crack of thunder confirming what he already knew. Several tense moments pass before she turns to face him again. Tightening her lips together, she reaches into her front pocket and pulls out a key. Without saying anything to him, she bends over and unlocks the shackles that are keeping him bed bound.

"I won't keep you locked up anymore either. I do have some information of my own that you're welcome to look at. You just don't know how vitally important it is for me to prove his innocence. It truly is a matter of life and death for me," she explains and before he can even utter a word, she walks out of the room but this time without the familiar click of the lock.

* * *

Sitting upright, Damon starts to stand up but grabs onto something when his knees start to wobble. As soon as he gets his land legs, he walks over to the window himself, jumping when he sees a bolt of lightning strike the lake. Mesmerized by nature's light show, he just stands there. Soon big droplets of rain are pummeling the window, blurring his field of vision. Taking a breath, he starts to step away when a crack of thunder fills the atmosphere. Damon turns and stares at the doorknob.

Deciding to chance it, he walks over and twists it. Even though he didn't hear the click, he's still a little surprised that she left it open. Although a part of him feels a little fear, he still ventures out of the room and down the stairs. With the front door directly in front of him, he has to fight the urge to run. Rather than run away and risk getting struck by lightning, he goes to look for her. He finds her in the kitchen, sitting at the kitchen table, her face laying on her forearms, a file of papers spread out in front of her. Having barely drifted off, Elena lurches up when she hears the creak of his shoes on the hard wood floor.

Raising one arm, "Calm down, I didn't mean to wake you. I just needed to get out of that room... May I?" he asks, motioning at one of the chairs with his eyes.

"Be my guest. Um.. are you hungry?"

"I won't deny that I am. What's all this?"

"Some of my father's records. I suppose you read everything you had about him since you investigated the crash."

"Pretty much. It was all in the files. I can look at what you have. Perhaps there's something here that wasn't included in his dossier."

"Help yourself." Standing up, she stares at him for a moment, turning away only after he does. Rather than watch her, he stands up to take her seat. When he starts to gather up the papers, she stops him to do it herself. "They're out of order," she says, quickly putting the pile back together before handing it to him. Sucking her lower lip into her mouth, she watches as he takes it from her hand. Momentarily lost in his eyes, she turns away when he drops them to the papers in front of him.

"I believe I read that your dad became a fighter pilot while he was in the military. I see he won the silver star for valor and a purple heart. Elena, just because he made a human mistake, that doesn't make him any less of a hero. I don't go into an investigation to find a scapegoat. I try to find the causes so hopefully those factors won't cause another plane to crash. Ruining reputations is not why I went into this field," he tells her and although he's trying to get on her good side, he is being sincere.

"Can I ask you one other thing?"

"Do you have my phone?"

"Yes, I have it. It's locked in the glove compartment in my car.

"Thanks," he mentions, his attention focused solely on her.

Nodding, she turns her back to him and starts to cut up a chicken. Although he's trying to read through her files, he can't help but look up every now and then. Soon the aroma of fried chicken fills the kitchen. After the storm passes, a light breeze blows in off of the lake so she opens the front door. With a plan forming in his mind, he sets the papers aside when she starts to set the table. As soon as she hands him a plate, he digs in, savoring the flavor of the chicken and potatoes with gravy.

"Do you want some water or coffee, I even have some Lime Kool Aid, it's my favorite."

"Kool Aid?" he laughs, sticking another fork full of potatoes into his mouth.

"Yes, Kool Aid," she confirms, crossing her arms over her chest. "

"Sure, I'd love a glass." Picking up his napkin, he wipes off his mouth and then takes the glass she offers him. Putting it to his lips, he swallows it down. As soon as he pushes his plate away, he decides now is as good a time as any to put his plan into motion.

"If you want me to do this, you're going to have to get me back to my office. All of the crash related evidence is in my file box. We can go over it again with fresh eyes."

"You want me to take you back to Denver?"

"Yes, that's where my office is located. I can't do anything without those files, Elena," he adds emphatically, hoping to convince her that it's of utmost importance.

When her heart starts hammering against her ribcage, she sucks her lower lip between her teeth again. Her eyes are darting everywhere but on him. "I need to think about it. More storms are moving in anyway so we'll stay here tonight. I won't lock you in the room, Damon. You're free to watch TV or look over my files but if you try to escape, I will find you."

"You have my word that I won't try to leave. Thank you for trusting me."

"I don't trust you but I'm not a Neanderthal either. I'm just going to do the dishes. You can take that..," she adds, pointing to the file, "And go into the living room. The recliner is quite comfortable and you can support your arm with a couple of the throw pillows."

"I'll do that." Standing up, he picks up her file and walks into the other room. It adjoins the kitchen so she can watch him while she's cleaning up. Damon is many things but he's not a liar and since he gave his word that he wouldn't try to escape, he won't, at least not right now with another storm rolling in. He can feel the wind start to pick up and the sky is darkening all over again. After taking a few minutes to breathe in the fresh mountain air, he takes a seat and starts to read through Captain Gilbert's life. Everything is here from the time he was a young boy through his high school years when he was a lifeguard, having been credited with saving eleven lives. As soon as he graduated, he enlisted in the US armed services. Damon must admit that his service record is beyond reproach. Suddenly the sky lights up as bolts of lightning streak across the horizon followed by the clap of thunder so loud he swears he feels the house shake. When the power goes out, he hears her whimpering. Although it's not that late yet with the storm, it's dark in the house. Hearing another whimper, he gets up, stopping in his tracks when he sees her curled into a corner.

"Elena?"

Quickly regaining her composure, she forces herself to her feet. "I'm sorry, I... I don't like storms." What she doesn't tell him is that her brother died in such a storm when the car he was riding in hydroplaned and crashed into a tree. He had spent the night before with his buddy and they were bringing him home when the accident happened. Although their family was never the same afterwards, Grayson refused to fall captive to his grief, instead he showered Elena and her mother with love and affection because he knew that Jeremy wouldn't want the family to implode.

"Are you alright?"

Wiping her eyes, she nods and then adds. "We'll go back to Denver late tomorrow. Is that okay with you?"

"Whatever you decide, Elena." After a long pause, he tells her he's tired and is going up to the room. He looks at her one more time before he slowly walks up the stairs and disappears into his room. Closing the door, he needs to come up with something by tomorrow night so he can free himself from her detainment. Dropping onto the bed, he opens the file again but before long, his eyes drift closed, the file dropping from his hands as sleep consumes him.

* * *

It's late afternoon by the time Elena pulls into the parking lot of the NTSB office. She has to bite back a little anxiety when she notices all the cars that are still there. Glancing at her watch, she sees that it's just after four P.M. After she steps outside, she throws her purse strap over her neck, letting it drape onto her right hip. Although her nerves are alight with fear, she's bound and determined to do whatever it takes to clear her father's name. As soon as they reach the front door, Damon pulls it open and motions for her to walk in. Since this is a federal building, there is a security apparatus in place.

"Miss, you need to put your bag in here," the security guard says, handing her a plastic bin to set it in. When she fails to do as he instructed, the guard prods her, saying, "Miss, you need to let me X ray your bag."

Fear erupts in every cell of her body with each beat of her thundering heart. Swallowing thickly, her big wide eyes reflecting the terror that's embracing her. In the midst of a full blown panic, her eyes dart and back and forth between Damon and the guard. Not knowing what to do and with stark fear causing her to lose all rationality, she grabs her purse and tries to run but the guard stops her with his own gun. Before she can even take a breath, the blaring sounds of sirens break the thick silence. And in the next moment, the door is flying open and a cop is handcuffing Elena. As she's being led away she doesn't bother to look back at him. With her head held high, Damon watches as the cop puts his hand on her head and pushes her albeit decently into the rear of the police car. The last thing he sees as she's being driven away is the look of betrayal in her big brown eyes.

* * *

 _Huge thanks to my sister, Eva. I love you dearly... always and forever._

 _Humungous thanks to all of you. You are the best there is._

 _Chapter title: "The Bitter Pill" by Warrant._

 _My friend, Salvatoreboys4ever is a writer here too. She has a series in progress, book 1 "Eternally Blood Bound" is the one I'm currently reading. Check her out if you're interested._

 _I did post the first chapter of "Edge of Thorns" yesterday. It is a dark story. PR updated Tuesday and ICEM will update soon._

 _Please remember to review._

 _Be safe and I hope you all have a safe and phenomenal day._


	5. The Perfect Storm

Sitting on the tailgate of the ambulance while one of the EMT's looks at his shoulder, Damon's mind is blur of contradictory emotions. When he feels a nudge, he jumps which makes his heart start to stammer wildly against his chest. The officer hands him a bottle of water. Taking it with his other hand, he thanks the officer. After taking a sip, Damon can't help but wonder what's happening to her right now. Despite the fact that she's nuts, he really doesn't want her to languish in prison. As beautiful as she is, he wouldn't be surprised if she becomes shower fodder for some of the other inmates. Shaking the image out of his mind, Damon looks up when he hears the officer's voice.

"Mr. Salvatore, did you know that this woman had a gun?"

"I knew she owned a gun, I didn't know that she had it with her," he tells the officer truthfully. And if he's to be entirely honest with himself and with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, he wishes that he had asked her about it. If she had left it in her glove box or under the driver's seat.

"When this all went down, I heard you mumble something about kidnapping. Is that why she ran?"

"You must have misunderstood," Damon starts to say, scolding himself for being careless although he has no idea why. When he looks at the cop again, he blows out a breath of air adding, "Judging by the look she had on her face, I would guess that she panicked," Damon says, grimacing when the guy helps him put his arm back in the sling.

"You said she fixed your shoulder?" he asks, closing up his medical kit.

"She did."

"I couldn't have done any better. You should get an x ray though just in case. We can take you to the hospital."

"Sure, Damon agrees because he'd rather not go to the police station.

"Mr. Salvatore, you'll need to make a statement," the officer says, pen and paper in hand.

"I don't have anything to say other than the fact that she probably forgot it was in her bag. Listen, sir, I'm in pain, I'm just going to let this fine gentleman take me to the hospital."

"That's all you have to say?"

"It is," Damon adds, wondering why on earth he's protecting her. He owes her nothing, she kidnapped him for heaven's sake and yet he can't find it in himself to lay the hammer down."

As soon as the officer steps back, Damon goes further into the ambulance. The attendant jumps in and pulls the doors closed and Damon finally relaxes a little bit when he feels the vehicle pull out of the parking lot. As he contemplates the last couple of days, he has to admit that his curiosity has been piqued. Closing his eyes, he lets the sound of the wheels on the highway lull him to sleep.

* * *

"Mr. Salvatore, your x ray is negative. You can stop wearing the sling after a week or so. I must caution you that it can take some time to completely recover from a dislocated shoulder. You can resume most of your usual activities within a couple of weeks, but avoid heavy lifting and no playing sports involving shoulder movements for at least the next six weeks."

"Seriously?" Damon asks, dropping his chin to his chest in frustration.

"I'm afraid so. Are you a sports junkie?"

"No, but my dad is curator at the zoo. I go there if I need to take a beat."

"So what do you do when you take a beat at the zoo?"

"I help to get their food ready and I feed them and play with the babies. I grew up there."

"I actually kind of envy that..," he starts to say, dropping his eyes to the chart. "I'll have the nurse come in with your discharge instructions. I'll write a script for some pain medication. Do you have a ride home?"

"Ah... I'll call my sister," Damon tells him except that his phone is still the glove box of her car. "Can I use the phone over there?"

"Yes, dial a nine first," he says then walks out of the room.

* * *

"Aren't you supposed to be in Washington DC?" Caroline asks when she sees him sitting in the E.D. waiting room. As soon as he sees her, he stands up, using his good arm to motion for her to go outside. "Since you obviously aren't where you are supposed to be, why the radio silence for the last couple of days?"

"What took you so long to get here?" Damon snaps, ignoring her question. He's hurt and tired, his nerves are on edge and all he wants to do is go home.

"Listen up, Damon. I don't know who peed in your Wheaties but don't take it out on me," she snaps back, crossing her arms over her chest.

Deflating visibly, Damon mumbles that he's sorry and that he'll explain when they get home. Staring at him for several minutes, she rolls her eyes and tells him to follow her to where her car is parked. As soon as they reach it, she pulls open the passenger door. After he slides in, she shoves it closed and then gets in herself. Damon is uncharacteristically quiet during the drive home which concerns Caroline. It's unlike him to be so tight lipped. Almost at the same moment she pulls into Damon's driveway, he jumps out of the car and hurries into his house. Since he hasn't taken a pain pill yet, the first thing he reaches for is his prized bottle of Patron. Just as he's pouring, Caroline steps into the kitchen.

"Do you want one?"

"Damon, what's going on?" she asks. Setting her purse on the table, she walks over to him. Leaning back against the counter just like him, she takes the glass he offers and then throws it back, earning a raised eyebrow from Damon. Sighing heavily, he motions for her to go into the living room. Collapsing into his favorite chair, Damon takes a sip of his drink and then looks at Caroline.

"I was kidnapped."

"What?"

"I said I was kidnapped."

"Oh come on. You can do better than that," she scoffs, giggling. Her lack of seriousness irritates him even more.

"I was kidnapped, Caroline. I'll admit that she wasn't quite as bad as Kathy Bates in Misery but she did fire a gun at my head so yes, Caroline, I'm deadly serious," he sneers, throwing back what's left in his glass.

"Look, Damon, I'm sorry but who would want to kidnap you?" she asks, raising her arms in surrender. After apologizing, she urges him to spill his guts.

"Her name is Elena Gilbert and in case you didn't already know, her nom de plume is "Katerina Petrova"... I thought that might capture your interest," Damon adds, rolling his eyes when her mouth drops open.

"Are you telling me that my favorite writer kidnapped you? Why on earth would she do that?"

"Her father was the pilot of a crash I investigated several months ago. The crash was ruled pilot error but she doesn't believe it. She wanted me to go through the files again in case I missed something."

"Well are you going to?"

"Caroline, she has no proof, nothing that would cause me to doubt my original findings. It's only her gut feeling."

"Where is she?"

"She's in jail. She was taking me to the office so we could look at my files. She had the gun she fired at me, by the way, in her purse which of course set security on her. The cops showed up before we could even suck in a breath of air."

"Let's go. We need to get her out."

"What!?"

"Her reputation will be destroyed. We can't let that happen, Damon."

"Just whose side are you on anyway?" he asks, shaking his head incredulously.

"Don't be ridiculous, you know I'm on your side but I'm not going to let her rot in prison. Come on, let's get down to the police station so we can bail her out."

"No!"

Standing up, Caroline steps in front of him and smacks him alongside the head albeit with love. "What the hell?" he snaps, rubbing the side of his head.

"We're going to go downtown to bail her out. Do you know which precinct they took her to?"

"I suppose the one that's closest to my office."

"Let's go."

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm tired and I hurt and I'm going to bed," he snaps. After a stare down with his sister, he puts his glass down and marches upstairs to his bedroom. Slamming the door shut, he collapses onto his bed and closes his eyes, not moving a muscle till he hears his front door slam closed.

* * *

Unable to sit still in her cell, Elena paces and back and forth, fisting her hands at her sides repeatedly. Just as she's ready to throw something, she hears a clinking sound. Looking up, she breathes a sigh of relief when she sees a guard opening the door. Gesturing for her to follow him, he puts handcuffs on her and then leads her to an interrogation room. Looking up, tears immediately form in her eyes when she sees Nick.

"Finally you're here," she whispers, dropping her face into her hands as her tears fall more freely now. Pulling her into his arms, Nick brushes his hand down her hair and then leads her to the table. He pulls out a chair, the sound of the legs dragging on the cement floor causes her to look up. Nodding, she takes a seat but refuses to let go of his hand.

"Talk to me, Elena."

"It's about daddy," she starts to say and then her eyes start to drift all over the cell. Leaning in she whispers, "Are we being listened to?"

"They can monitor you when a detective is listening to you but you do have fifth amendment rights against self incrimination. They can't listen in to us."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Elena. Now tell me what you did."

Talking in as low a voice as she can, she explains how she tried to kidnap Damon Salvatore, minus the incriminating details of course. His mouth is hanging wide open by the time she finishes her story.

"What ever possessed you to do such a thing?" he asks, shaking his head incredulously.

"You know why, Nick. Whatever happened on that plane wasn't my father's fault. You know it as well as I do," she says firmly, reaching for a Kleenex to wipe her eyes. "I'm so scared, Nick. Can you get me out of here?"

"I can't get you out of here tonight, Elena. You'll go before a judge tomorrow and he'll set bail. After that I'll be able to get you out. Do you know if Mr. Salvatore talked to the police at all?"

"I have no idea. If he did, you might as well send me to Bellevue. He thinks I'm certifiable."

"Can you blame him?"

She stares at Nick a good long time before she finally utters the word, "No."

"Listen, sweetie. You're going to have to stay here tonight."

"I know. But please get me out of here as soon as you can tomorrow," she adds, raising her hands to wipe away her tears.

"I will. What do you want me to tell Miranda?"

"Don't tell her anything. I'll talk to her myself tomorrow. Thanks for coming."

"Of course," Nick adds. Standing up, he pulls her for another hug and drops a kiss to the crown of her head. "You're like a sister to me, Elena. If your parents hadn't taken me in, I don't know where I'd be today. So try not to worry, I'm not going to let anything happen to you if I can help it."

"Goodnight Nick," she says, surrendering herself to the guard when he opens the door after Nick raps on it. As he's urging her back to her cell, she looks over her shoulder, giving him one last long look before she disappears behind the double doors leading to the cells.

* * *

Walking up to the information desk, Caroline puts on her best smile. When the officer looks up, she asks, "My best friend was brought in here last night on a huge misunderstanding. We were trying to prank my brother and it got out of hand."

"Um, who are you talking about, Miss?"

"Elena Gilbert of course. Can I see her?"

"If you'll have a seat, I'll find out for you."

"Thank you," she says, flaunting her assets a bit before she turns around to take a seat. Picking up a magazine, she starts to thumb through it, Damon drops into the seat next to her.

"How on earth did I let you talk me into this?" he mumbles, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Because somewhere underneath all the bluster lies a great big heart and you know that she doesn't deserve to be locked up for the next twenty five years."

"She had her gun trained on me, Caroline," he whispers inadvertently squeezing his coffee cup till it spills on his jeans. Cursing, he stands up and walks to the bathroom without saying anything else. Using paper towels, he dries off his jeans. By the time he walks back into the waiting area, he looks up in time to see Brady leading Caroline back to the visiting area. Still wondering how in the hell he let Caroline talk him into this, Damon walks over to get another cup of coffee. Rather than wait inside, he swears under his breath then leaves the building to wait for her or them by his car.

* * *

"Elena, I'm so sorry this happened to you," Caroline says, embracing the shocked woman in her arms. Placing her mouth by her ear, Caroline whispers to play along. Linking her fingers with Elena's, Caroline turns to face Brady demanding that Elena be freed. For her part, Elena is in shock, having never seen this woman before. Is she really here to help her or is she here to throw the last bit of dirt on her grave? Feeling her heart begin to pound wildly against her chest, Elena just stares at the woman. Too stunned to speak, she follows her to her seat, sitting down when the blonde pulls a chair out and gestures for her to sit.

"Why don't you tell me why I should let her go?" he asks, gesturing for the two women to take a seat. As soon as she's seated, her focus is drawn to the woman named Caroline as she listens incredulously to everything the woman is telling the officer.

"This has all been a terrible misunderstanding," Caroline starts to say. "This was all meant to be a big prank on my brother and somehow it blew up in our faces thanks to my brother's stupidity I might add."

"Who is your brother?" Brady asks, amused by the audacity of the gorgeous blonde that's sitting across from him.

"Damon Salvatore. Perhaps you know him, he's an NTSB investigator?"

"I know him. How did he ruin your prank?"

"He thought Elena was really kidnapping him you see. He can be so dumb sometimes," Caroline adds, shaking her head.

"Okay.. Is your brother here?"

"Yes, he should be in the waiting room."

Since Caroline is monopolizing the conversation, Brady turns to Elena. "Is this true, Miss Gilbert?"

"Yes, of course. Things just got out of hand before we could let the cat out of the bag as it were," she says, her eyes darting nervously from Caroline to Brady.

"You ladies can wait here. I'm going to bring Damon in. For your sakes, I hope he'll vouch for your veracity, Miss?" he asks, staring at the blonde.

"My name is Caroline Forbes."

"And Damon is your brother?"

"In all the ways that count, yes," she says firmly, crossing her arms over her chest in a show of defiance.

"Okay then. I'll be right back," Brady says then disappears leaving Elena and Caroline alone.

"Why are you doing this for me?" Elena asks, staring at the other woman.

"Because he told me what happened. I don't believe for a moment that you would have actually hurt him. I'm trying to help you, please believe me. Despite his protestations to the contrary, he doesn't want you to go to prison either. He's a good man, Elena," Caroline whispers, squeezing Elena's hands. Before she can say anything else, the door creeks. And when Elena's eyes meet his, she finds herself metaphorically falling through the looking glass of his brilliant blue eyes. With her mouth suddenly dry as cotton, she drops her gaze and tries to clear her throat.

When Elena turns away the spell is broken. Damon drops his own eyes, looking up only when Brady mentions his name. "This woman, Caroline, claims that this was all a prank and that Miss Gilbert should be released. Can you confirm her story?" Brady asks, not missing the looks that pass between Damon and Elena.

"Since I don't know exactly what my sister told you, I will say that nothing sinister happened here. Apparently it was all supposed to be a practical joke that didn't work out as they had hoped. So if you don't mind, the three of us can be on our way."

"As long as you're not pressing any charges, I'll let her go. But not without an admonition, Miss Gilbert. No more weapons in federal buildings, do you understand?"

"I do, I swear.. I didn't even realize that it was in my purse. I didn't mean any harm, I really didn't."

Nodding, Brady motions for them to follow him and before long, the three of them are walking out of the police station and towards Damon's car. I need to call my friend to tell him that I'm out." Without hesitating, Caroline pulls her phone out of her purse and hands it to Elena. Turning her back to them, Elena tells Nick she's free and is on her way home. He tells her that he'll stop by when he gets done with work and then clicks off the phone. Elena makes another quick call to her mother to tell her that she's fine. After repeatedly reassuring the woman, Elena pauses for a moment before turning around, the phone in her hand. "I need to call a cab to go home," Elena says, handing Caroline back her phone.

"Your car is still in my parking lot. Is my phone still in your glove box?"

"That's where I left it," Elena confirms, her voice still a little shaky.

"Let's worry about that later. We'll take you home, Elena and then the three of us can have a chat if that's okay with you?"

"Yes, I don't know how to thank you, either of you." she adds, her eyes drifting towards Damon's. Shrugging his shoulders, Damon unlocks his car and after Elena and Caroline are both seated, he decides to take them all back to her home after she reveals her address. All the way he has to wonder what the hell kind of a hold does she have on him already?

* * *

Knowing she owes them her freedom but not quite knowing why Damon would help her after everything, he invites them inside. As soon as she reaches the couch, she collapses into a puddle of tears. Caroline immediately sits down beside her and holds her close. Damon doesn't know what to do but he does know that for whatever reason, it feels funny inside to see her crying.

"Please don't cry, Elena. I'm going to help and Damon will help you too," Caroline promises her.

"But I was horrible to him. I didn't know what else to do. I know my father isn't guilty but I went about this all the wrong way," she blubbers, taking the Kleenex that Caroline offers her. Looking up, Caroline smiles tightly at Damon. Right now, he almost thinks he'd rather have her setting him up with another blind date because now not only is she going to boss him around but Elena will too. His eyes happen to drift outside and he can't believe he's here right now when less than twenty four hours ago, she was still holding him captive. How in the hell did this happen, he has to wonder, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Damon, why don't you go to the kitchen and make us some coffee?" Caroline says, using her head to gesture for him to leave the room. Rolling his eyes, he walks out, still wondering how in the hell he could be back at the scene of the crime. Frustrated at being made the villain by his sister, he slams the cupboard door closed after pulling the can of coffee out. Once it's perculating, he leans back against the sink and crosses his arms. Although he hasn't changed his mind about her mental state, he has to admit, he's anxious to get into the file for Flight 1042 again. As soon as the coffee finishes, he pulls three cups out and fills them. Looking around, he finds a platter to place them on. After doing so, he walks back into the living room. Incredulous, Damon stops in his tracks, his jaw nearly reaching the floor when he hears Caroline say, "Now we just need to figure out what Damon got wrong on his report."

* * *

 _Huge thanks to Eva. I love you dearly._

 _A huge thank you to each and every one of you. I really appreciate your support and the reviews really spur the muse._

 _Chapter title: 'The Perfect Storm' by Brad Paisley_

 _My other 3 stories will be updating over the course of the week ahead._

 _Please remember to review._

 _Be safe and have a phenomenal day._


	6. Could We Start Again, Please?

"Elena..., I'm really sorry about your father and for everyone else that died on that plane, but you have my word that I went over every piece of evidence no matter how insignificant it may seem to an untrained eye with a fine tooth comb," Damon stresses, hoping that she'll understand. Given what she did to him, he really doesn't understand why he hates that he has to hurt her even more.

"I know my father, Damon. You didn't. He wouldn't have made such a mistake," Elena insists, wringing her hands together.

"Damon, surely you must have made a mistake? Do you really think she would go to the trouble of kidnapping you if she didn't know something?" Caroline interrupts, wrapping an arm around her new friend's shoulders.

Incredulous, Damon blurts out, "Whose side are you on anyway? She held me at gunpoint, Caroline!?"

"Oh stop," she retorts, blowing him off.

"Unbelievable," he spits out. With his hands fisting at his sides, he struggles to maintain his composure. After several moments, he tries to keep his voice calm as he continues, "Flight 1042, an Airbus A320 departed from Sky Harbor in Phoenix at 0915. It crashed into the San Juan mountain range at 11:30, hurtling to earth at a speed of four hundred and twenty miles per hour, just over the Colorado border. As someone once said, you're entitled to your opinions but not your own facts."

"Damon," Caroline blurts out, giving him the evil eye when she notices that Elena's eyes are glistening.

"What about the black boxes?" Elena asks, her gaze boring into him like a laser beam.

Knowing those big, burnished, endless eyes of hers are going to be his undoing, he adds, "They were badly damaged in the crash. Our experts at the NTSB in DC were able to get some information off of them though."

"Well?"

"Elena!?"

"Surely you could have made a mistake when you were reading the report? I've seen you read sometimes, usually you only give it cursory attention."

With his face contorting with barely controlled rage, he turns away. Cursing under his breath, he spins around, focusing his attention on Caroline. "I take my job very seriously. Novels, books, magazines, yes, I give those cursory glances but I resent you claiming that I don't do my job thoroughly. I painstakingly go through every single piece of evidence that I can get my hands on. Quite frankly, it pisses me off that you question my integrity."

"I'm sorry, Damon," she adds, shame washing over her for a millisecond. "But...you are not infallible either, none of us are. What if we go to the office, you can show her the black box report?"

"Are you being serious right now?" he sputters, scrubbing his hand across his face in frustration. "Do you really think they're going to let her back in after what happened last night?"

"Yes, because my mother is the boss," Caroline retorts, raising her brows as if to say, 'take that'.

"If you have it all planned out, why do you need me to go along?"

"Because you know the technical terms."

"I'm sure Elena knows all about technical terms. Her dad was a pilot and all," he snaps, immediately feeling bad for popping off when he sees the look on Elena's face. Dropping his chin to his chest, he stares at his shoes for a few moments. After taking a few more to swallow back his anger, he finally looks up. With his eyes firmly on his sister for all intents and purposes, he gets up, pulls his keys out of his jeans pockets and heads for the door. As he turns the knob, he turns around, "Are you waiting for a certain shade of green to go?"

Rolling her eyes at him, Caroline threads her arm through Elena's, the two of them following Damon outside and into his car. Once Caroline and Elena are inside, he starts the engine, squealing the tires as he backs out of his driveway. Although he knows this is a fool's errand, he also knows that Caroline won't give him a moment's peace unless he goes through with this. Damned if he does, damned if he doesn't, Damon rolls down the window, rests his arm on the door and drives.

* * *

As soon he stops the car, Caroline and Elena jump out. Pulling her hair around her face to shroud it a bit, she follows Caroline to the door. Rolling his eyes, Damon steps out of the car, locking it up before he trots over to the door. Using his key, he unlocks the place, immediately they're greeted by security. Unluckily for them, it's one of the guards who was here when the cops took Elena away.

"Mr. Salvatore, what's going on here?" he asks, placing his hands on his hips but his index finger is tapping against his revolver. Swallowing thickly, Damon starts to say that he has some reports to go over although he's certain Oscar isn't going to buy his excuse.

"What's your name?" Caroline asks, pushing Damon away to go face to face with the guard.

"Officer Bateman, mam."

"Well Officer Bateman, do you have any idea who my mother is?"

"No, mam," he replies, his eyes dancing back and forth between Damon and the blonde woman.

"Elizabeth Forbes, the prestigious head of this NTSB office is in fact my mother. And another thing, you scared the life of my best friend here by calling the cops all because of a practical joke that she and I were playing on Damon. Shame on you, Mr. Bateman. I really think you should apologize to my friend here," Caroline adds, pulling Elena into her arms to make her act look convincing.

"Mr. Salvatore?"

"She's telling you the truth Oscar. We're not here to cause any trouble, you have my word. I just need to look over one of my files."

"I am sorry, Miss. I had no idea it was a prank."

"Apology accepted," Elena says, curling into Caroline's embrace, to try to hide her smile.

"Thank you for apologizing, Mr. Bateman but unless you want to speak directly to my mother, I suggest you step aside."

"Will you take responsibility for this...," he starts to say, waving his hand back and forth between Elena and Caroline, "Whatever this is?"

"Yes, Oscar, of course. We won't be long."

Although the man looks skeptical, he steps back, finally allowing Caroline and Elena to pass. Frustrated and angry himself but also knowing he'll never hear the end of it, Damon leads them to his office. After turning the lights on, he walks over to his desk and sits down. When he hears the door shut, he uses his hand to gesture for the two women to take a seat. Dropping his eyes, he fires up his computer. Going through all the safeguards that are in place, it takes him several minutes to get to the file.

"Are you sure you want to hear this?" he asks without taking his eyes from the screen.

"Yes, I need to know why you're blaming this crash on my dad."

"Listen." And when he clicks a button, a garbled voice is heard, saying " _Captain Gilbert, what are you doing?" the co-pilot, Finn Mikaelson, asks frantically. The voice still charged with emotion continues almost immediately, "You can't possibly..."_ Then the cryptic recording then ends.

"That's what you're basing my father's guilt on. Fifteen words is all it takes for you to be judge, jury and executioner?" Elena snaps, flying out of her seat. Placing her palms flat on his desktop, she gets in Damon's face. "You claim to be a professional and yet you're willing to take a crackling, garbled recording as the whole story?"

"Look, you may not like me very much but I will not allow you or anyone else for that matter to question my eithics."

"You heard that recording just as well as I did. That's not the whole story here and you damn well know it, Inspector Salvatore!"

"What I know is that I went through every piece of evidence that was presented to me. I read it over and over and over again before I came to the conclusion that it was pilot error that caused Flight 1042 to crash. Your father should have reported the problem they were having to the air traffic controller responsible for the flight. Growing up with a pilot, I'm sure you know a thing or two about airplanes. Most technical problems are isolated and had he found a suitable place to land, the plane could have been saved. From what we've been able to ascertain, the moment the trouble started, he stopped communicating with the tower. There's no evidence of problems with the com system."

"I don't care what that recording or anything else shows, my father is not responsible."

"You're acting from a place of emotion, Elena. You can't separate yourself from your father and look at the evidence objectively. That's exactly what my job is. The plane remained on radar for sometime after communication ended. We do know that the navigation systems failed but there are other ways to get past that. Even in the event of a complete EFIS failure, that is the electronic flight instrument system, which is where all the data from the navigational instruments is displayed, he should have been able to safely land the plane. As I'm sure you're aware, there are four monitors, both the pilot and the co-pilot have them. If one set stops, the pilot can switch to the other one. This is all presumptive of course because we haven't been able to determine the cause of the catastrophic descent."

"Damon, can you get the entire file from the NTSB office in DC?"

"Caroline, you may have been able to pull rank with poor Oscar out there but in this office, your mom would be on my side."

"I don't care. You have to have missed something. Look at her, Damon. I know how close you are to your dad, if it was him who piloted that plane, you would leave no rock unturned in trying to find something, anything to prove that he wasn't responsible for the deaths of those people."

"But it wasn't my dad, Caroline," he yells back, his anger level reaching stroke magnitude.

"Damon, please. I'll help you in any way I can. Please?"

"I will do it on one condition..."

"And what's that?" Elena butts in, leaning against the edge of his desk, her arms crossed.

"I will do this on the condition that you accept whatever it is we find. If I made a mistake, I'll change the findings of my report but if not, you have to promise you'll accept it."

"Bu.. bu..," she starts to say, shutting up and shaking her head when she realizes that it's her only option. "You have a deal," she reluctantly agrees. Seeing her conceding nod, he turns his attention back to the computer. With a few clicks, he orders a complete copy of the report to be delivered to him asap. When he stands up, he accidentally brushes against her, gasping almost imperceptibly at the electricity that immediately starts to course through his body, causing his heart to stammer wildly. Not knowing the hell that was, he shudders slightly then pulls his office door open. Using his arm, he gestures for the two women to walk through. After locking his office, he follows them outside, pausing only to say goodnight to Oscar.

* * *

"Where do we go now?" Caroline asks, sliding back into the passenger seat of Damon's car.

"I'd like to go home if you don't mind. I can make us a pot of coffee?"

"That sounds wonderful, Elena. We'd love that, wouldn't we, Damon?"

"Oh absolutely we would, Elena," Damon adds, more than a little sarcasm lacing his tone. Exiting the parking lot, he makes sure the road is clear before pulling onto the road. Following Elena's directions, he turns into the highway. Once they're outside of city limits, the traffic thins, allowing them to drive uninhibited down I-70. After passing Buffalo Bill's gravesite, she tells them to take the Evergreen exit. As soon as they reach the wooded area, he turns onto a gravel road, pulling to a stop in front of a large home.

Feeling his heart begin to pound, Damon realizes that this is where she held him captive. Following her into the house, he looks around but with it being late at, he only has the light of the moon to look around with. As soon as she unlocks the door, she tells them to have a seat while she makes some coffee. When Caroline excuses herself to use the bathroom, Damon walks into the kitchen. Pulling a chair out from under the table, he sits down, staring at her pert little backside while she makes the coffee.

Reaching into the cupboard, she puts three mugs on the table. "Are you hungry? I have some leftover tater tot casserole."

Staring at her, he finally nods. "Do you need help?"

"No." Turning away, she reaches into the refrigerator. After stirring the casserole, she sticks it in the microwave before putting some plates and silverware on the table. Just as she's about to pour the coffee, Caroline joins them, taking a seat beside Damon.

Wanting to turn the screws a little, Damon asks, "Can I go downstairs, Elena? I was just getting comfortable down there when you forced me out."

"What?"

"You heard me. Can I, Elena, go downstairs, you know that little room..?"

"What are you talking about? You've never been here before," Caroline interrupts, looking at him skeptically.

"Oh yes, I have. This is where she brought me after kidnapping me," he spits, not taking his eyes off of Elena. Before she can say anything, the slamming of a door grabs everyone's attention. After eyeing Damon and Caroline, she hurries out of the kitchen to see who is in her house.

"Nick? What are you doing here this time of the evening?" She asks, her heart pounding wildly inside of her chest.

"You haven't answered your phone. And I guess being in jail, you wouldn't have access to it. But imagine my surprise when I went down to the jail only to find out that you had been released? When you wouldn't answer even after that, I started to get worried. And how did you get out?"

"You didn't need to be worried. I'm fine," she starts to say, her eyes widening when Damon and Caroline walk out of the kitchen.

"I didn't know you had company?" he adds, glancing over at Elena's guests.

"Um, Nick, this is my friend Caroline and her brother, Damon... Salvatore."

"The Damon Salvatore? The one who wrote the report on Grayson's crash?"

"Yes, that would be him," Damon interrupts, extending his hand to shake the other man's.

Shaking it, Nick looks back and forth between Damon and Elena finally offering, "First of all, you didn't answer my question about getting out of jail and secondly, what's he doing here?"

"If you want to go downstairs with us, I'm sure Elena would be able to explain.. wouldn't you, Elena?" Damon adds, waggling his brows at her knowingly.

"I don't think so. Do you want to join us for coffee, Nick?"

"I want someone to explain what's going on here?"

"Nick, may I call you that? I'm Caroline, Damon's sister. Elena and I, well we were able to convince the police that they were making a big mistake. And as far as Damon and I being here, we're just trying to settle the little misunderstanding between Damon and Elena."

"Misunderstanding?" Damon asks incredulously, his eyes nearly popping out of his head when he glares at her.

"Yes, dear brother," Caroline reaffirms. Standing beside him, she gives his ass a pinch, indicating that he better play along if he knows what's good for him.

Too angry to fall on the sword, Damon again says he wants to go to the basement. Instinctively knowing that Damon isn't going to drop it, she finally nods, leading her guests down the stairs. As soon as they get down there, Damon happens to notice the photo on the fireplace mantle. Having seen many pictures of Captain Gilbert, he recognizes him easily but he's a bit stunned when he sees the woman in the wheelchair, smiling brightly at the whomever is taking the photo. Walking over, he picks up the photo. Elena is almost the carbon copy of the woman so he's sure that she much be her mother. Now what does he do? With her mother obviously wheelchair bound, Elena probably spends a lot of time helping the woman. After setting it back down, he shivers when he happens to see the little room that he was kept in. Lost in his thoughts, he startles slightly when Elena's friend steps beside him.

"That's Elena's mother. She has Multiple Sclerosis, that's why she's in a wheelchair," Nick mentions, a smile forming on his face as he looks at Miranda.

"I didn't know. Um, are you two involved?" Damon asks, knowing it's none of his business.

Taken aback, he eyes Damon with a little dismay. "Why do you want to know? Aren't you the one that had her taken to jail?"

"She kidnapped me and held me captive for the weekend. ," Damon snaps, not backing down.

"What?" he asks, clearly not believing what Damon just blurted out. Still stunned, he turns to the girl who's as close as a sister to him. "Elena, tell me you did not do that."

"Nick, I.. I..," she stutters, turning to Caroline for help. Stepping up, Caroline wraps an arm around Elena's shoulders. After leveling Damon with a look that could shatter glass, she smiles sweetly at Nick.

"No, no, my brother is mistaken. Elena wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone kidnap him. Damon doesn't know a prank when it bites him in the ass."

Seeing that Damon is about to go thermonuclear, Elena takes a breath and removes Caroline hand from her shoulder. "He's not lying, Nick. I did kidnap him but it was only to convince him to look over his report on dad's crash again. I know you and mom too have tried to convince me to give it up but I can't. Mom needs his insurance and retirement fund. They're trying to take it to give to the other crash victims. I don't begrudge their families at all. If one of my loved ones died, I'd want compensation too but I can't let go, not until he can show me proof beyond a reasonable doubt that dad's negligence caused the plane to crash."

"Elena, kidnapping is a felony. You're in serious trouble here."

"No, Damon told the police that it was all a practical joke. He's going to go over the official report again."

"Is this true, Mr. Salvatore?"

"Yeah, it's true.. but only on the condition that she accepts it if there is no other conclusion."

"Elena?" Nick asks, nodding his head, urging her to accept his condition.

Sucking in a deep shuddering breath, Elena focuses all the power of her big brown eyes on him. With a soft but firm voice, she replies, "Yes, Damon. If you can prove to me beyond a shadow of a doubt that my dad was complicit in the crash, I'll accept it and never darken your doorstep again."

Stepping over to her, Damon offers his hand a second time to seal their agreement. Staring at it for a second, she raises her eyes and takes his hand in hers, shaking it firmly. "Um, it's late. Why don't you and Caroline stay here tonight?"

"I have to work in the morning, Elena. I should go home," Damon explains, his eyes dropping to their still conjoined hands. When she lets go, he's not sure why but he already misses the warmth.

"There's an alarm clock at the bedside. I'll make sure you get to work in time."

"Um, Elena, I think I'll stay too, if you don't mind?" Nick asserts, eyeing her carefully.

"No of course not, Nick," she adds, forcing a smile. After showing Caroline to a room and saying goodnight to Nick, she leads Damon down the hall, opening the door to show him inside. Pushing the door closed, she drops down onto the bed. Surprised when he sits down beside her, she clasps her hands on her lap. Swallowing thickly, she raises her eyes, looking directly into his, "I'm really, really so very sorry, Damon. I shouldn't have kidnapped you. It was wrong, I know that. What I should have done is simply asked for your help. But with my mother and all, I was crazed with worry. I hope that maybe one day you can forgive me." Closing her eyes for a moment, she then stands up. "Goodnight, Damon." Without looking back, she walks out of the room, closing the door behind her. Ducking into her own room just across the hall, Elena flops face first on the bed, fear and frustration and something she doesn't quite recognize bringing tears to her eyes.

* * *

 _Love you dearly Eva. Thank you so much for everything._

 _Huge thanks to each and everyone of you for taking the time to review and support my stories. I never wrote a damn thing till I found DE fan fiction. It's really an enjoyable hobby._

 _Chapter title: "Could We Start Again Please?" from 'Jesus Christ Superstar'._

 _The final chapter of ICEM will post later this week as will chapter 2 of "Edge of Thorns"._

 _Be safe and have a fabulous day. Thank you all again._


	7. Something About You

After having a not entirely uncomfortable breakfast with Elena this morning, Damon reiterates that he's many things but he's not a liar and keeping his word is very, very important to him. Walking him out to his car, she apologizes again, thanks him profusely and assures him that she'll get Caroline home. With a nod, he gets in his car and drives home to change clothes and go to work. Stepping out of the shower, he quickly dries off and gets dressed. Stopping only at the Starbucks drive through on the way, he pulls into the parking lot a short time later.

Taking a sip of his drink, he jumps out of his car and hurries into his building. As soon as he's through security, he goes directly to his office. Going through his correspondence laying on the top of his desk, he deposits most of it in the waste basket before digging into the reports on another accident, that of a single engine plane, carrying three people that crashed in a field not far from Denver. As part of his job, he and Brady drive out to the site to look around and after talking with the local police, they go back to the office. With it mid afternoon already, Damon is expecting to find the Gilbert report on his desk by the time he gets back. When it's not there, he asks his secretary in case some of their mail hasn't been delivered yet. Finding nothing, Damon is about to call Washington when his phone rings. Picking it up, he answers, "Salvatore here."

 _"Damon, it's Slater. How's it going buddy? I haven't talked to you for awhile. Any new lady friends?"_

"Ha ha," Damon laughs, "No new lady friends right now."

 _"Losing your touch?" Slater adds, laughing himself._

"You dare question the master?" Damon retorts, rubbing his temple.

 _"Um, I got your request for the files on flight 1042. I just wanted to verify that it's the right file."_

"Yeah, I thought it would be here by now."

 _"Is there something that you're looking for in particular?"_

"I just wanted to go over a few things. I promised a friend of Captain Gilbert that I'd look it over once more."

 _"Who would that be?" Slater asks._

"Just someone I know, Slater."

 _"The black boxes were pretty damaged as you know, Damon. I wasn't able to retrieve much from them."_

"I realize that, Slater. Just send me the file okay?"

 _"Sure, I'll send it overnight express."_

"Thanks, Slater. I'll talk to you soon," Damon adds, then hangs up before the man can reply. Although he's a little irritated that the file isn't here, there's nothing he can do on the case till he receives it. Dropping his face into his hands, he scrubs across it. Fatigued, he gets up to pour himself another cup of coffee. With his mind elsewhere, he drops the mug when he pours the hot coffee on his thumb. "Son of a bitch," he yells aloud, dropping the mug to the floor, shattered pieces flying skittering across the linoleum floor. Walking into the bathroom, he runs cold water onto his thumb for a few seconds. Angry at himself, he goes then to ask the housekeeper to sweep up the glass, thanking Gus profusely when he's done.

Glancing up at the clock, he sees that it's time to go home. Anxious to sleep in his own bed tonight, he turns off his computer, locks his office door and walks outside to his car. By the time he gets home, he drops his head against the steering wheel when he sees Caroline's car parked in front of his house. Figuring he might as well get it over with, he gets out of the car and starts to the door, head hung, almost as if he's about to face the Spanish Inquisition.

* * *

Before he even steps foot in the door, she's on him. "Did you get the file? Did you have a chance to look at it?"

"Caroline, I'm hungry, I'm rather cranky and I'm tired. So if you don't mind...?"

"Damon!?"

"I didn't get the file today, alright? It should arrive tomorrow."

"What do you mean you didn't get it?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. It didn't come."

"Well... what are you going to do about it?"

"Caroline, there's nothing I can do until I get the file."

"But Elena is depending on us."

"Don't you think I know that?" he snaps, raking his hand through his hair.

"What about my dad? He knows a lot about airplane construction. I'm sure he'd help if you asked, if we asked."

"No, I'm not asking your father for anything, Caroline. I'm surprised you would even suggest it."

"He's still my dad, Damon," she adds, plopping down on the couch in a heap. Sighing, Damon walks over to the bar. Pulling out the bourbon, he pours some for each of them. After handing her a glass, he drops down onto the couch beside her. Taking a sip, he relishes the flavor as it bursts on his taste buds.

 _"Caroline, come on, let's go for a walk," Damon says, linking his arm with hers._

 _"But he's supposed to pick me up. What if he comes and I'm not here."_

 _"Dad can text if he shows up, right dad?" Damon asks, his eyes drifting from Caroline to his father._

 _"Of course. We have some new baby Cheetahs. Why don't you guys go have a look?"_

 _"That sounds great, dad. We will." Dropping his eyes to Caroline, he tips his head, indicating that they're going to go onto the zoo grounds now. When she bobs her head, he pulls her towards the door. As soon as they're outside and walking down the path towards the big cat exhibits, she starts to cry. Pausing, Damon pulls her into his arms, hugging his sister tight and tries to reassure her that he'll never let her down the way her dad does time and time and time again._

"I know you love your dad, Caroline. But I was there all those time when he broke his promises to you and to me too. I don't like him."

Staring at Damon for a few seconds, she concedes his point and then empties her glass of bourbon. Getting up, she grabs the bottle before plopping back down next to him. With the bottle in hand, she tops off his glass before refilling her own. After setting the decanter down, she clinks her glass with Damon's and then leans into his arm. "We're quite the pair aren't we?"

"We are indeed," Damon laughs, fatigue and frustration combining to rob him of any rational thought. And in the moment for the two of them really, his only escape is irrational, raucous laughter.

* * *

"Mom?" Elena asks, stepping into the house, followed by Nick.

"I'm in the living room, dear," Miranda says aloud.

Taking a deep breath, Elena sets her bag down on the foyer table and then goes into the living room, sitting down beside her mother on the couch. Nick, after making a detour into the kitchen to get himself a bottle of water, sits down in the recliner that's positioned to Miranda's left from where she's comfortably seated on the couch.

"Where's Lexi?"

"She went to the grocery store. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself for a couple of hours, Elena. You know that."

"Rare," Elena retorts, showing her cat claws so to speak.

"Is something bothering you, Miranda?" Nick asks, taking a long pull from his water bottle.

"I want to know what's going on here. You haven't answered your phone for a couple of days young lady. Now talk."

"Mom, I..," Elena stammers, looking to Nick for help. Miranda picks up on that immediately.

"Nick, you obviously know what's going on. What did she do?"

Knowing her mother can see right through her, she swallows past the lump in her throat and asks, "Mom, why are you so certain that I did something wrong?"

"Because I know you. Whenever you'd get tightlipped and kept to yourself as a child, it was always when you did something you shouldn't have. So I'm going to repeat myself, what have you done?"

"Fine, you want to know what I did?" Elena asks, running her hand through her hair. Seeing her mother nod her head, Elena explains what she's been up to the last few days.

"You did not do that," Miranda blurts out, aghast.

Feeling her stomach twist uncomfortably at the thought of confessing her 'crime', she clenches her hands together in her lap and then looks over at her mom. "I did do that. And although I'm extremely sorry about the means and the method I chose, I'm not sorry that I got to talk to him. He promised me that he would go over his report and look at the evidence again. He gave me his word that if he finds something to exonerate dad, he'll change his conclusion but if not, I promised him that I would accept it."

"Elena, sweetheart, kidnapping is a serious offense. That means jail time and scandal."

"He's not going to press charges mom."

"He doesn't have to. Kidnapping is a federal offense.. Isn't that right, Nick?" she asks, turning to attention to him.

"It is. But somehow, Damon's sister and I suppose Damon himself were able to convince the police that it was nothing more than a practical joke. So right now, she's off the hook. You're very lucky that he seems like such a stand up guy, Elena," Nick adds, looking at her pointedly.

"You should be thanking that man with everything in you, young lady."

"I did apologize and I sincerely meant what I said to him. You're right, I was very wrong about him. He was nothing like the man I made him out to be. I honestly don't know why he was so decent about everything considering..."

"It's done now. But you have to promise me that you will indeed accept his findings and that you didn't just say that to get him to agree to examine the evidence again."

"I gave him my word, mom. I won't go back on it."

"Alright, dear. Now give your mama a kiss," Miranda adds, tapping her index finger on her cheek. Smiling, Elena wraps her arms around her mom's neck and presses a kiss to her cheek. With the air cleared, they help Miranda back into her wheelchair and the three of them go outside to take a nice long walk in the sunny outdoors.

* * *

Arriving at work the next morning and finding the file still not available, Damon steps into Liz's office to tell her that he's leaving for a little while and that she should text him as soon as the file arrives. Looking at him curiously, she tells him to close the door and sit down.

"What's going on, Damon?"

"You mean you haven't spoken to your blonde blabbermouth of a daughter?" he laughs, unable to do anything else.

"She mentioned that the two of you helping Elena Gilbert and said something about a prank that didn't quite go as expected. It wouldn't be the first time," Liz chuckles, rolling her eyes. "She's lucky I didn't have to do a whole after action report, thanks to Brady's understanding."

"Yep, that's her," Damon admits, blowing out a puff of air in frustration. Although he doesn't know why or how, just the thought of her makes the blood roar in his ears with each beat of his heart.

"Why don't you tell me what's really going on?"

"Elena took me to her house and explained how, from her point of view of course, that her dad couldn't possibly be at fault in the crash. Between her and Caroline, I couldn't get a word in edgewise so to placate them, I agreed to go over my report and the evidence again. There's something about _her_ that I couldn't say no to and then there's your daughter..," he adds, twisting the lid off a bottle of water that Liz hands him. "By the time all was said and done, I told her that if I find anything new, I'd amend the report."

"Do you think you made a mistake?"

"No Liz, I don't. I think I made the correct conclusion based on the evidence that was presented to me. But Elena is desperate. Her mother is wheelchair bound so I'm sure their medical expenses are enormous. I kind of understood why she felt like her back was against the wall. It doesn't hurt to look at it again."

"Alright, I'll vouch for you on this. Now where are you going?"

"I'm just going to run over to the zoo to have lunch with dad. Please text me if the file arrives from DC. I'll hightail it back here."

"Okay, Damon. Tell him I should be home on time today."

"I will. Thanks, Liz," he adds. If they weren't in the workplace, he would press a kiss to her cheek before saying goodbye. As soon as he jumps in his car, he pulls out into traffic and gets on the interstate, taking the Colorado Boulevard exit to reach the zoo. As soon as he parks his car, he gets in line. With the clerk recognizing him, she lets him through. Thanking her, he hurries into the administration building and takes the stairs up to his dad's office.

"Damon, to what do I owe this surprise?"

"I can't come and see my dad when I want to?" he chuckles, dropping into the chair in front of his dad's desk.

"What's on your mind Damon? I'd recognize that face anywhere. Something is troubling you and my guess is that it's related to someone of the opposite sex?"

"How?"

"You're my son, Damon."

"Well, you're wrong this time. There is no girl. I'm not seeing anyone right now."

"You're sure?"

"Positive," Damon insists, staring out the window over his dad's shoulder.

"You're not a very good liar, Damon but I'll let it go for now. You're obviously not ready to talk about it yet."

"Dad?"

"Damon?"

Rolling his eyes, Damon gets up, walks around to his dad's side of the desk and leans against it, saying, "Let's get something to eat. I'm hungry."

"Lead the way," he agrees. Getting up, he follows Damon out of his office. After locking and pulling his door closed, he joins Damon, trotting down the stairs behind him. As soon as they're outside, they walk to the café and get in line. Once they have their food, they find a quiet table and chat. As he looks out over the smiling kids and adults too, he realizes how much he still enjoys coming to this place.

* * *

Upon receiving Liz's text, he goes back to the office to painstakingly go through what Slater has sent. At first glance, he doesn't see anything new jump out at him. Tired after another long day, he slides it in his desk drawer and locks it. Glancing at the clock he sees it's nearly seven pm already. Having had enough for one day, he vacates the premises to go home. When he drives by his favorite bar, he happens to notice not only Liz's car but also Caroline's. Deciding he wouldn't mind imbibing a little himself, he pulls into a parking space and walks inside. Glancing around, he drops his chin to his chest when he notices Caroline with her dad. Just as he's about to bust up their little get together, someone grabs his arm and pulls him towards the bar.

"Liz?"

"I know, Damon. I don't like him anymore than you do and I was married to the bastard. But he is her father so we need to let her make up her own mind."

"I just don't like him. He's treated her abysmally, Liz."

"That's very true but there's nothing we can do about it."

"I guess. Buy you a drink?" he adds, taking a seat.

"Sure, just one though, your dad has supper waiting."

"Why are you here then?"

"Caroline called me to meet her. Bill arrived shortly afterwards. And rather than make a scene, I told her that I was going to go. I was about to leave when you walked in."

After ordering a couple of tap beers, Damon looks over his shoulder at Caroline. When she gives him a wink, he rolls his eyes and turns his attention back to Liz. Taking a long pull from his pilsner glass, he enjoys the nutty flavor of the house brew as it goes down.

"The file came. Have you had a chance to look at it yet?" Liz asks, taking a deep drink from her own glass.

"I just gave it a cursory glance today. I intend to give it my full attention tomorrow though." Finishing off what's left in his glass, he quickly orders another one, taking another sip about the same time Liz finishes her glass. Deciding to call it a night even though it's not late, Damon pays the tab and follows Liz outside. Just as he's about to unlock his car door, Caroline catches up to him.

"Why don't you join dad and me?"

"I'm tired, Caroline. I'm going home to take a nice hot bath and then I'm going to bed. I have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

"It's a little early for Casanova isn't it?" she teases, giving him a wink.

"Casanova is long retired, Care. Have fun with your dad but be careful okay?" he adds, genuinely concerned for his sister.

"I will, Damon. I know you don't like him but he told me he'd help you."

"You told him?"

"Of course. He's an aviation expert too."

"But not in crash investigations. Please don't ask me to let him help?"

"Damon, for me, please?"

Dropping his chin to his chest, he shakes his head back and forth for several seconds before raising his eyes again. "Why do you do this?"

"Do what?" she asks, pretending to be coy.

"I'm going home, Caroline. If and only if I can't find anything, I will reconsider asking for his help. That the best I can offer you."

"Thank you, Damon," she says, wrapping her arms around his neck, she gives him a hug. As irritating as she is sometimes, Damon wouldn't want to know what life is like without her so he hugs her back. After pressing a kiss to her hair, he lets go and slides into the driver's seat.

Stepping back, Caroline watches him drive away. Even though they butt heads more often than not, she wouldn't want anyone else for a brother.

* * *

 _Thank you so much, Eva. I love you dearly and really appreciate everything you do for me._

 _Very big thanks to all of you as well. I wouldn't be here if not for all of you. You are all the best, bar none._

 _Chapter title: 'Something About You' by Level 42._

 _"Edge of Thorns' is also in progress._

 _Have a beautiful day, know that you are all appreciated and I thank you again._


	8. Sole Survivor

As he drives down US highway 6 towards his exit, Damon mulls what to do next. As much as he loves Caroline, he can't stand her father. The absolute last thing he wants to do is be indebted to Bill Forbes for anything. Another thing perplexing him is the fact that he can't seem to get Elena out of his mind. The woman kidnapped him, holding him captive at gunpoint and yet, he can't deny that being with her does things to him, things he doesn't quite understand. Annoyed at himself, he drives right past his exit, cursing aloud when he realizes it. Glancing at the clock on the dashboard, he sees that it's not that late yet. Clutching the steering wheel tightly, he says, "What the hell" out loud then slides into the right lane so he can veer onto the Evergreen exit.

Restless, he turns on the radio, rocking out to the Kansas classic, ' _Carry On My Wayward Son'_. "There'll be peace when you are done," he sings aloud, one hand patting the steering wheel to the beat of the catchy tune. Evergreen, Colorado is a beautiful little town, not far from Denver, so picturesque in fact that it would have no trouble fitting into a Norman Rockwell painting. Driving along, he tries to remember which street that her home was on. When he sees the Wildflower Trail sign, he makes the left turn and continues driving slowly down the street. When he finally finds the familiar house, he breathes a sigh of relief. Although he knows she won't slam the door in his face, for whatever reason, he hopes that maybe she'll be a little excited to see him. Suddenly an attack of nerves socks him right in the belly so rather than pull into her driveway, he continues on, driving around the block while he debates whether or not he should disturb her. Out of nowhere, an overwhelming need to see her trumps all of his doubts so when he sees her house again, he does pull into her driveway.

Sucking in a deep shuddering breath, he gets out of the car and jogs down the sidewalk and up the ramp that leads to her front door. He assumes the ramp is because her mother is wheelchair bound. Reaching the door, he raises his hand to knock but just as his fist is about to make contact with the wood, it opens itself.

"Damon?"

"Hi. I, I honestly don't know how I ended up out here." Finding himself uncharacteristically nervous, he eyes dart around before they finally settle on hers. "I got the file, Elena."

"Well..?"

Realizing that he really doesn't have anything to tell her, he feels a little bit silly for driving out here. With his eyes boring into hers, he adds, "I haven't gone over in its entirety yet but so far I haven't found anything that would lead me to another conclusion."

Smiling uncomfortably, she drops her stare for a moment. After several seconds pass, she says, "Come on in, Damon, please?"

"I don't want to interrupt your evening."

"You're not." With that, she moves aside giving him room to come in. Nodding he does just that, his skin electrifies when his arm accidentally brushes hers. "I'm just making some supper. Are you hungry or would you like a cup of coffee?"

"I am a little hungry but I don't want you to go to any trouble."

"It's no trouble," she affirms, leading him into her kitchen. Seeing that she has vegetables strewn on the counter, he asks her what she's making. "Chicken stir fry."

"I know my way around a kitchen, do you need some help?"

"If I give you a knife, you won't stab me will you? I mean, eye for an eye and all that."

"No," he chuckles a little uncomfortably, not knowing whether she's serious or just saying it in jest.

"I'm kidding." Setting the knife down, she turns to face him, leaning against the countertop. "I know this awkwardness is my own fault but I don't know how to act around you. I did a horrible thing. I just want you to know that I am truly sorry for what I did... And Damon, I mean this sincerely, I really do hope someday that you can forgive me."

"I will admit that I feel a bit edgy too here, Elena. Why don't we do this?" he says, taking her right hand in his. "I'm Damon Salvatore, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Smiling at his willingness to start over, Elena squeezes his hand and introduces herself as Elena Gilbert. The feeling of his hand in hers is doing wicked things to her insides. Feeling her cheeks heat up, she's certain that they're blooming a bright red shade about now. "You mentioned something about knowing your way around the kitchen?"

"I do. My stepmom, for all intents and purposes, taught me and Caroline when we were in high school."

"What do you mean by intents and purposes?"

"Dad and Liz never married but we've lived together as a family since I was like twelve years old. For the longest time it was because Care's dad wouldn't give her a divorce. Maybe one day they'll make it official but they're happy. I think if they ever do tie the knot, it'll be at the zoo."

"The zoo?"

"My dad is curator of the Denver Zoo. I worked there all through high school and part time in college. I still love to spend time at the place."

"Wow, that sounds like an amazing job."

"It was, believe me," Damon adds, taking the knife she offers. The two settle into a comfortable silence while. Once the food is finished cooking, Elena plates it up, handing one to Damon before they sit down at the table. Picking up the fork, she takes a bite of the stir fry.

"Whatever you added to this, it's fabulous," Elena moans, savoring the flavors as they blend on her tongue.

"Just a little of the Salvatore magic," he winks, taking a drink of water from his glass. Finishing their meal in comfortable silence, Elena then takes their plates and sets them in the sink. After pouring them each a cup of coffee, she sits back down. Staring into nothingness, Elena looks up when Damon sneezes.

"This may sound morbid but the crash site, Damon, what was it like?"

Taken aback, Damon doesn't know what to say. He remembers all too well the badly burned bodies, many missing limbs and worse. Pieces of twisted metal and burning rubber, blood, suitcases open with clothing lying all over the place. Knowing he can't fill her head with nightmares, he takes her hand for a moment. "Elena, I don't want your last image of your father to be like that. Please don't ask me to do so," he adds, his mind drifting to _that_ day.

 _Struggling against opening his eyes, he feels fingers trying to open them. As hard as he tries to squeeze them shut, a strong hand prevails and shines a bright light across them. "Stop," he pleads, tears beginning to fill his eyes. "Mr. Salvatore, your son is awake," Damon hears someone say. The next thing he hears is a chair scraping against linoleum and his dad's voice in his ear._

 _"Damon, open your eyes, son."_

 _"I don't want to, I'm scared."_

 _"Damon, I'm here," he says, picking up the boy's hand, cradling it between his own. Slowly Damon opens them and looks around, fear enveloping him so tightly that it feels like someone is sitting atop his chest. Images of flaming wreckage, blood, lots of blood and the smell of acrid smoke flash inside his mind._

"Damon?"

Swallowing thickly, he looks at her intently. "Elena, I know how hard this is for you. I do understand."

"How could you understand unless you've lost someone," she asks, pulling her hand away to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. Sighing heavily, he rakes his hand through his own. It's then that the dam breaks. With his focus on something over her right shoulder, he starts telling her a story, narrating it really. Seeing the void expression on his face, Elena listens with rapt attention, struck by how far away he seems.

 _It is July 19, 1989. He's going to visit his grandparents in Chicago with his mom and older brother. He is so excited to be able to fly on an airplane, it being his first time. He remembers holding his mom's hand as they board the plane. Being the baby of the family, his mom lets him have the window seat. Stefan is beside him with their mom taking the aisle seat. A little over an hour into the flight, the plane lurches violently when the cabin is rocked by an explosion. The sound is so very loud, indescribably loud. Almost immediately, the plane starts to make funny noises. 360 plus thousand pounds of flesh and metal start hurtling nearly 250 miles per hour towards the earth with no way to stop it. In the final seconds, he holds her hand, begging her not to let go._

"I was just a kid, Elena, but I remember thinking that we were all going to die. I can still clearly hear the words, "Brace, brace, brace" blare over the intercom and then we all dropped below the level of the seats in an effort to protect ourselves. It was like a row of dominos was falling, seat by seat, people's head dropping to their laps. Suddenly there was the sound of grinding metal so loud that sometimes I can still hear it," he says, dropping his eyes to his clenched fists. Feeling the throat begin to tighten, he takes a breath and continues, "The plane began to bounce and tip, terrible noise and people screaming and black, putrid, suffocating smoke and fumes began to fill the cabin. I was certain that I was going to burn alive but the plane just kept rolling and rolling. And then suddenly a chasm opened up where the tail section had snapped off. It was eerie because I can still see the sunlight and the blue sky shining through that hole. People, still strapped to their seats, were torn free and sent tumbling down the runway," he finishes, his voice trailing off. Reaching up, he wipes the tiniest tear from the corners of his eyes. He can't help it, every time he thinks about his mom and Stefan, tears come.

"Damon, I'm so, so sorry," Elena says, a horrified look on her face.

"I don't remember much after that till I woke up in the hospital. My dad was there but my mom and my brother, Stefan were among the one hundred and eleven people that perished in the crash."

"Oh my God, Damon, I.. I had no idea."

"I'm sorry I laid that on you but you need to know I don't take my job lightly. I value my integrity a great deal and I wouldn't just cast blame on your father without evidence."

"I understand that now.., but please, Damon, I need you to put everything you have into this. It's important for me to clear his name. But if you conclude without a shadow of a doubt that he was at fault, I gave you my word that I'd accept it and I will honor that promise. Glancing up at the clock, she yawns, "It's late and quite frankly, I need a drink. So if you care to join me, you're welcome to stay if you want?"

Even though he's emotionally exhausted, it strangely feels like a weight has been lifted. Very few people who know him are aware that he was on board *Flight 232 when it crashed in a Sioux City, Iowa cornfield on that sunny July day. When he hears a glass slide across the table top, he looks up to see her taking a long pull right out of the bottle. "Cheers," he says, clinking his glass with the bottle before downing it with one swallow.

"More?" she asks, taking his hand and pulling him along with her to the living room. Holding the glass up, she sets it aside and offers him the bottle after plopping down on the couch beside him. "I really didn't anticipate this evening turning out like this," Elena laughs, taking another long draw when he hands it back to her.

"It really didn't figure in my plans either.. I just wanted to see you, okay?"

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah," he adds, taking her hand in his, he gently strokes it with his thumb. Dropping her eyes to her hand, she feels her breath hitch but can't deny it feels good to be with him. After they each have a few more tugs at the bottle, Elena is feeling nice and buzzed as is Damon. Leaning her head on his shoulder, she's just about to drop off when he nudges her awake.

"Come on sleepyhead, let's get you to bed," Damon says, pulling her onto her feet. With his arms safely around her so she doesn't stumble, he helps her into her room. Starting to teeter once they cross the threshold, he picks her up and lays her on the bed. Carefully he takes her shoes off and looks around the room. Walking over to the sliding glass doors that lead onto a patio, he looks up at the sky. It's a moon bright night and as such, he can easily see what's beyond her door. The house sits on the outskirts of town, the forest as her backyard. It's exquisite really. For whatever reason, his gaze drifts to the standing bird bath. It's sitting on the edge of her flower garden. Although he doesn't see any birds around now, he imagines that she has quite a few visitors during the daylight hours. Hearing her moan, he takes a breath and then picks up the afghan that's hanging over the back of the rocker. Once he drapes it over her, he places the wispiest of kisses to the top of her head, closing his eyes at her sweet scent. Standing up, he happens to notice some pictures sitting atop her dresser. Unable to deny himself, he can't help but smile when he sees a young Elena with her arms around her dad's middle, hugging him tight. He's wearing his captain's uniform and hat. After glancing over at her one more time, he leaves the room, quietly closing the door behind him.

* * *

When he awakens the next morning, Damon stretches his limbs. Glancing at the clock on the bedside stand, he rubs his eyes and then sits up, dropping his legs over the side of the bed. Just as he's about to go into the bathroom, he hears a knock on the door. He watches intently as the door slowly opens, smiling when she pokes her head through the crack. "I'm making breakfast. You can shower if you want, there are towels in the bathroom closet."

"Thanks, Elena. I think I'll do just that," he adds, standing up. Forgetting that he's only wearing his boxer briefs, he ambles towards the bathroom, looking over his shoulder when he hears her gasp. Knowing she likely saw his burn scars, he stops and turns around. "I was badly injured in the crash. They'll always be a reminder of the worst day of my life." The day I lost them he thinks to himself.

"You survived, Damon. They, the scars, are also a badge of a strong young boy who somehow survived that terrible day," she says, trying to convey that his blemished skin is anything but repulsive. Nodding, Damon smiles tightly then walks into the bathroom and shuts the door, obscuring him from her view.

Once he gets downstairs, he joins her in the kitchen where she has strawberry banana pancakes waiting for him. His eyes grow wide as saucers when she slides the yummy goodness in front of him. "These look amazing."

"They taste pretty amazing too," she adds with a wink. Taking a seat, she pours her own syrup and then hands the bottle to Damon.

"Umm, umm," Damon confirms, licking his lips.

Feeling a tingle at the juncture of her thighs, Elena stuffs a bit of pancake into her mouth before a moan can escape. Finishing up in companionable silence, Damon helps her do the dishes and then tells her he needs to head to work. Walking him outside, he stops when he reaches his car door. Taking her hand in his, he gives it a squeeze. "I promise that I'll be in touch. If I find anything new, good or bad, I will tell you. You have my word."

"I believe you, Damon." With a nod, he slips behind the wheel.

Just as he starts to back out, he rolls down the window, adding, "Thanks for breakfast, bye, Elena." When she waves, a broad smile graces his face, his insides humming with something unfamiliar but good nonetheless.

* * *

Happily, he drives with the window open, the fresh mountain air blowing through and tangling his already messy head of hair. At the same time he reaches the Denver city limits, he notices a plane, it wheels down as it's about to land at DIA. It's then that he realizes that he hasn't yet listened to the black box recordings from Flight 1042. He went through the transcripts of them several times. Although he does remember listening to them repeatedly in the early aftermath of the crash, he hasn't heard them since. Once he pulls into his office parking lot, he jumps out of the car and jogs into the building. As soon as he's at his desk, he unlocks his drawer and lifts out the package that Slater sent from DC. Opening it up, he finds his suspicions confirmed. More than a little agitated, he picks up his phone to call the man. Rubbing his temple in frustration, he feels even more consternation when he's placed on hold by the operator.

 _"Slater here."_

"Slater, it's Damon Salvatore in Denver. I need you to send me the black box audio recordings."

 _"Didn't I already do that?"_

"You sent a file yes but the disks aren't here."

 _"Really? I was certain that everything was included. Are you sure?"_

"Yes, Slater. They're not here and I need you to send them."

 _"I'm just about to leave for an important meeting. I'll get them to you tomorrow, okay?"_

"I guess it has to be okay since I'm not there to kick your ass," Damon adds, raking his hand through his hair.

 _"Kick my ass?" Slater laughs. "You'll get it tomorrow. I really have to go," he says, clicking off the phone._

"Son of a bitch," Damon curses, slamming the phone down. Shaking his head, he gets up to pour himself a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, he can't help but think of her. Knowing he has work to do, he takes a long pull, refills his cup, sits down at the desk and opens the file.

* * *

Slipping on her garden gloves, Elena walks into the backyard to do some weeding. Stooping down, she starts to pull some creeping jenny's and some old dandelions. Although she loves them, they're a nuisance when they're no longer blooming. With her knees on the ground, she stares at the forest in front of her, smiling when she sees a couple of bluebirds in the trees. Their blue hue so similar to _his_ gorgeous blue peepers. There's something about that man... she doesn't know what it is but whenever she's near him, her body feels like it's on fire. When she finishes with the weeds, she picks up the hose to fill her bird bath. With her attention on what she's doing, Elena doesn't notice her visitor till she feels a hand on her shoulder. Jumping, she slams her palm across her chest trying to calm her stampeding heart. "Caroline, you startled me!"

"I'm sorry, Elena. I didn't mean to. I thought that maybe we could talk. I brought us some coffee and rhubarb muffins."

"Rhubarb muffins? That sounds delicious."

"They are. And if you want to know a secret, Damon made them."

"He told me he knows his way around the kitchen."

"Did he now?"

"He showed up here quite surprisingly yesterday. What is it about the Salvatore siblings and surprise visits?" Elena laughs, motioning for Caroline to follow her into the house.

"Really?"

"He just dropped by to tell me that he got the file," she explains, not revealing that her brother spent the night.

"You like him don't you?" Caroline asks, her smile as bright and as wide as the Mississippi River itself. Before sitting down at the table with Caroline, Elena pulls a stick of butter and knife out of the cupboard. As soon as she plops down, she takes one of Damon's muffins. Breaking it in half, she picks up the knife, slathers a thin coating of butter on it and takes a bite. Moaning as the delicious flavors awaken her taste buds, she covers her mouth, "These are delicious."

"He is a good cook, I'll give him that," Caroline laughs, taking a big bite herself. After taking a big swallow of coffee, she tells Elena about the fact that her dad is also an expert on airplane mechanics and that at her behest, he agreed to offer his expertise to Damon. "However, Damon doesn't like my dad very much or at all. I do know that Damon got the files from Washington DC but I don't know how much he's looked into them yet."

"He told me that. He said that at first look, nothing jumped out at him but he also told me he intends to go through every page and every piece of evidence thoroughly."

"He's good at what he does, Elena. He's very methodical and his dedication to his job is top of the line. I know he's tight lipped at times but please believe me when I tell you that my brother is very empathetic towards the survivors and the victims families. He has personal... Um, sorry, I talk to much sometimes. So, Elena, is your friend Nick involved with anyone?"

"Wow, talk about changing topics," she chuckles, taking another bite of her delectable muffin.

"He is kind of cute."

"I've known Nick forever. His dad and my dad were childhood best friends. I don't remember exactly how old he was but his mom abandoned them. She simply walked away. Of course his dad filed a police report. The police found her somewhere in New York City. Since they had proof positive that she was alive, the criminal investigation closed but Nick hasn't seen her since she left him and Mikael. A few years later when Nick was fifteen, his dad was killed in a logging accident. He came to live with us after that. He is my brother in every sense of the word just like Damon is to you."

"That's really sad. But he's a good guy?"

"Yes, he's a great guy. He's kind of a loner but he loves to draw and paint and he's quite good at it." Standing up, Elena walks away, returning a few moments later with a picture. It's a painting of a mountain tundra covered with wildflowers.

"It's beautiful."

"He knows I love wildflowers... So.. Caroline, if I was to give him a little nudge, would you go out with him?"

"I would," Caroline adds, giving Elena a wink. Smiling herself, Elena raises her coffee cup, clinking it with Care's. With a toast to the their brothers, they each take a drink, giggling wildly when they set their cups down.

* * *

"Hello Liz."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Liz snarls, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Caroline asked me to talk to Damon about the Airbus A320."

"Does Damon know she did that?"

"I don't know," he starts, stopping when Damon walks into the office. With his face in a file, he walks right past Bill and over to Liz. When he sees the look on her face, he turns around, frowning himself when he sees Bill Forbes standing not three feet from him.

"What are you doing here?" Damon adds, repeating Liz's words.

"Caroline mentioned that you might need some help on the Gilbert crash."

"Bill, if I need your help, I'll ask for it. Now if you don't mind, I need to talk to Liz about another crash I'm working on," Damon adds as he walks over, opening the door. Without a sound coming out of his mouth, he gestures for Bill to leave.

"Fine, but if you change your mind, you know how to find me," he adds then walks out of her door, not seeing the middle finger that Liz raises at him.

"I love her dearly, Liz, you know this but there are times that I'd like to throttle her."

"I know that Damon. If you ever tell her this, I'll deny till I'm blue in the face but I feel the same way," Liz laughs, giving his arm a squeeze. "You can discuss it with her at family dinner tonight. You will be there right?"

"Yeah, I'll be there. But about the Granger crash," Damon starts to mention after pushing her office door closed.

* * *

Stepping out of the car, Damon pushes the door shut and walks up the sidewalk. Hearing his name, he turns around forcing a smile when he sees Caroline's bubbly one. "You came?"

"Why are you acting like it's out of the ordinary. Don't I always come for family dinner?"

"Yes but you've been a bit distracted lately."

"Being kidnapped might have something to do with it," Damon adds, rolling his eyes.

"Stop it. You know she's very sorry about that."

Not wanting to get into it with her, he puts his hands on his hips and gets into her face. "Why was your father at my office today?"

"Um, did I forget to mention that? He really wants to help, Damon. That makes me happy," she adds, pouting at him adorably.

"Don't give me that look, you know it's my Achilles Heel," he sputters, shaking his head. "I know you mean well, I really do but I told you the other night that if I needed his help, I would ask for it."

Before she can answer, the door opens. "You two are here." Stepping aside, Liz gestures for them to come on in. As soon as Matt and Liz finish dinner, they all take a seat at the dining room table. Picking up the roast, Damon puts a slice on his plate followed by corn, mashed potatoes and gravy. After picking up a bun, he starts to eat, not paying attention to Caroline's chattering till he hears _her_ name.

"Did you know that Damon has a new lady friend? Her name is Elena. She's a wonderful girl."

"The Elena...?" Liz starts to say, raising an eyebrow at Damon.

"Really?" Matt asks, smiling at his son. He wants nothing more than for Damon to find a nice girl and settle down. "Do tell."

"Dad, she's a nice girl. I met her under rather unusual circumstances that I'd rather not get into," Damon adds, glaring at Caroline as he sticks a piece of roast into his mouth.

"He and I actually spent the night at her house. It was late and we were all tired so she was kind enough to offer us a bed. Wasn't she Damon?"

"It's really not a big deal."

"Um, what about Andie?" Liz asks, taking a swallow of water.

"There's nothing between Andie and me, not anymore. I really don't want to talk about it, it's complicated with Elena. I told you about her already, Liz."

Catching on immediately, Liz nods but doesn't say anymore. He can see that she's worried about him. She's been his mom for a very long time. The rest of the meal is spent making small talk. When they finish, Damon takes his dog, Gus, outside. As he starts to walk around the block, his dad catches up, walking alongside of him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Dad, her father was a pilot in the plane that crashed in the San Juan Mountains, flight 1042. She wants me to try to exonerate her dad."

"Really?"

"I told her that I would look over the files again. But I won't change it unless I find something new. I can't be bought, dad."

Walking down the sidewalk, Damon lets Gus lead them into one of the city parks. It's starting to get dark so they won't be able to stay long. Although his dad and Liz live in a safe part of the city, crime can happen anywhere. Taking a seat on one of the benches, he drops his eyes, focusing on a patch of Iris flowers.

"Damon, I know that and how much you take pride in your integrity..., but this girl, you really like her?"

"I know that I like being with her. I can't explain it. I even told her about mom and Stefan."

"You must like her, Damon. You never talk about them, rarely even to me."

"It hurts too much," he adds, biting back the tears that are threatening. Taking his son's hand, Matt gives it a squeeze.

"Damon, you can talk to me, you know that. As much as I love Liz, not a day goes by that I don't think of your mom and Stefan. I wish, I wish so much that I would've asked her to wait to take the next flight or leave the next day but no one could have known that was going to happen. I'm just so very grateful that you survived Damon."

"Yeah, but why me? Why did I survive and they didn't?"

"I can't answer that, Damon. Where is this coming from?"

"I don't know, dad. Life is so tenuous, so unpredictable. I know you sent me to counseling for all those months but sometimes I still feel guilty that they died and I lived."

"If I could take your pain away, Damon, I would. Know this, son, there is no doubt in my mind that your mother and Stefan too are very proud of the man you've become as am I. Now why don't you and I go across the street to the Dairy Queen right over there and get ourselves a cherry dipped cone?

"That's the best offer I've had in a long time," Damon agrees. After ruffing up Gus a bit, Damon and Matt walk across the street and order their cones and an extra dish of ice cream for Gus. As they sit on the picnic tables to eat, Damon takes bite of the cherry coating. Staring into nothingness, again his mind is pervaded by a profound sense of loss. Closing his eyes, he fights back the tears. Although the distance of time makes grief a little easier to bear, it never ever goes away.

* * *

*United Airlines Flight 232, a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10, was a scheduled passenger flight from Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with an en route stop in Chicago, Illinois. On July 19, 1989, at 14:09 Central Daylight Time, Flight 232 departed Denver with 285 passengers and 11 crewmembers on board.

About 1 hour and 7 minutes after takeoff (at approximately 15:16 CDT) the flight crew heard a loud bang followed by vibration and shuddering of the airframe. The flight crew checked the engine instruments and determined that the No. 2 engine (tail-mounted) had failed, and they initiated the engine shutdown checklist. While performing the shutdown checklist, the flight crew noted that the aircraft's normal system hydraulic pressure and quantity gauges indicated zero. The No. 2 engine failure had been caused by a catastrophic uncontained fan disk burst that resulted in engine debris damaging the aircraft's three hydraulic systems that were located in the tail section of the aircraft.

The airplane was minimally controllable via the use of asymmetric thrust control. The crew managed to maneuver the airplane to the vicinity of Sioux City, Iowa. At 16:00 CDT, after being cleared to land at Sioux Gateway Airport in Sioux City, Iowa, the airplane experienced a crash landing while attempting to land on runway 22. There were 111 fatalities, 47 serious, and 125 minor injuries from this accident.

* * *

 _Some of Damon's description of what it was like inside the plane and the crash are taken from researching survivor's accounts._

 _Huge thank you to Eva. I love you dearly._

 _Huge thanks. I appreciate each and everyone of you for without your support, I would not be here. You're the very best._

 _Chapter title: 'Soul Survivor' by Asia._

 _"San Francisco" and "Edge of Thorns" are in progress._

 _My young friend cassisechubster is working on her first ever Delena story, "Flips and Stuck Landings". Their families are all gymnasts._

 _I would love to hear your thoughts on the chapter._

 _Be safe and have a fabulous evening and a wonderful Wednesday. I am off to work. Hopefully it will be a "Q" word night. Thank you all again._


	9. What A Feeling

Sitting in his office, Damon listens intently to the tapes that Slater sent but they're suspiciously silent. There are only crackling like sounds, electric type noise, no voice data at all. Looking through the package that was sent from DC, Damon doesn't find anymore reels of tape. Raking his hand through his hair in frustration, he has to wonder why Slater seems unwilling to give them to him. "Fuck Damon, you're losing it," he says to himself as he pulls out another report. If it wasn't for her, there is no way he'd be digging into this again. Elena, he thinks, her big brown eyes staring at him through his mind's eye. Although he's somewhat loathe to admit it to himself, he realizes that he's doesn't want to disappoint her.

Getting up, he walks over to his coffee pot to pour himself a cup. On edge now, he walks over to the window, staring at the Rocky Mountains that paint the horizon. Their snow capped peaks sitting against that background of a clear blue sky is nature at its finest. What he wouldn't do to get out of Dodge and climb one of those peaks right now. Taking a sip of coffee, he spins around when he hears his office door creek.

"Brady, what can I do for you?" Damon asks, walking back over to his desk.

"There was a train derailment in Littleton."

"Casualties?"

"None. Cuts, bruises, scrapes. You coming with me?"

Needing to take his mind off of Elena, he finishes off his coffee then follows Brady, closing and locking his office door behind him.

* * *

Making the right turn on the now familiar road, Caroline drives towards Elena's house. She's excited to spend time with her new friend. She's never bonded with someone as easily as she has with Elena. It's like they're soul sisters or something. Although it's much, much too soon for her to be booking reception halls, she'd like nothing better than for Elena to be her real sister someday. If only she can get Damon to comply, she thinks to herself, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter. When she reaches Elena's street, she turns onto it, continuing down the road till she sees her house. Pulling alongside the curb, she stops the car and steps out. Reaching inside for her purse, she closes the door and then walks up the sidewalk, ringing the doorbell when she reaches it.

A few moments later, the door opens. "Hi Caroline, come on in," Elena says, stepping aside. After shutting the front door, she leads Caroline into the kitchen to have a cup of coffee. Sitting down, Caroline says thanks when Elena hands her a mug.

"So, have you heard anything from Damon? I mean about my dad's case."

"No, Elena but I'm sure he'll keep you informed if he finds anything. He's only doing this for you."

"Do you really think so? I don't know, Caroline. I wish I could have do over of meeting him. I like Damon, a lot, but considering we met when I kidnapped him, I don't know how he can get past that?"

"Don't tell him I told you so but I have a feeling that he might like you just a little bit too," Caroline laughs, getting up to refill her cup.

"From your mouth to God's ears," Elena says silently, raising the cup to her mouth. When they finish, Elena washes their cups and puts them in the drain rack to dry. "I know for a fact that Nick is at my mom's house. Would you like to go say hi?"

"I would indeed," Caroline replies, a beaming smile forming on her face. After Elena grabs her handbag and phone, they leave the house. Pausing long enough to lock up her house, Elena slides into the driver's seat while Caroline gets in the passenger side. Looking over her shoulder, she starts to back out of her driveway and onto the street. Slipping the gear into drive, she presses the gas pedal and drives the ten miles to her mother's place. Once she parks the car, they get out. Smiling at Caroline, she links arms with her and then leads her into the house. Immediately they're greeted by both Elena's mother and Nick. Joining them at the kitchen table, Elena offers Caroline another cup of coffee. Having had too much caffeine already, she shakes her head no.

Wanting to give Caroline and Nick some time alone to get to know one another, Elena turns to her mom. "Mom, why don't you and I go outside for awhile? I'm sure there are some weeds that need picking?"

"Why yes dear, that's an excellent idea. You know I love Lexi to pieces but she's no good at gardening."

"This is the weekend her brother is getting married right?" Elena asks, pouring herself a glass of water.

"Yes it is which explains Nick's presence this time of the day. Let's go dear, I'd love to sit in the backyard for awhile."

"It's settled then. Are the yard gloves in the garage?"

"They are," Miranda says, backing her wheelchair out from under the table. Stepping behind her, Elena pushes her outside through the backdoor, down the ramp and into the backyard by the bird bath. Once her mother is settled, she runs to the garage to grab a pair of gloves and a lawn bag to drop the weeds in. Looking over her shoulder, she gives Nik a wink when she sees him looking at her through the kitchen window. Turning around, she drops to her knees and start pulling at the weeds, hoping that her almost brother will take advantage of his time along with Caroline.

* * *

Seeing her wink at him, he knows that she's attempting to play matchmaker again. But he will admit that he likes what he's seen of Caroline so far. She's bubbly and bright, he's enamored of her blue eyes and wavy blond hair. A big part of him hopes that this one will be different because most of the dates that she's arranged haven't exactly been a roaring success. Feeling his heart pound just a little faster than normal, he looks away from the window and drops his gaze on her before asking, "So, Miss Caroline, how can I help you?" Leaning against the counter, his hands on either side of him gripping the sink, he focuses solely on her.

"I think you're rather cute and I'd like to get to know you better," she says, without even a hint of blush.

"You're blunt," he laughs, pulling out a chair and sitting back down. "Was this your idea or hers?"

"Mine actually, why?"

"Elena enjoys arranging dates for me but she doesn't actually date much herself. She's beautiful and kind and yet, she's never met anyone that really excites her. As such, she dates sporadically but I worry about her sometimes."

"Ah, that's sweet," she adds, smiling. Tracing the pattern of the tablecloth with her fingernail, she raises her eyes to his before continuing, "Damon is like that in a way too. He did have a steady girlfriend but they broke up a while back. Not to change the subject but if you want to know why I'm blunt, I'll tell you. My brother is a good guy, he really is but he's cocky and smart. In order to keep up with him, I had to learn to speak my mind. Don't get me wrong, I love him, I do but sometimes it's hard to compete against him."

"Why would you need to compete against him?"

"Damon is kind of a perfectionist you could say. Every T has to be crossed and every I dotted and sometimes it's hard to live up that standard. It's not Damon's fault, he's never pushed me to be something I'm not, I really don't know how to explain it," she adds, running her fingers through her hair.

"What do you do?"

"Me? I manage the Sephora store in the mall. It's a store full of makeup and beauty products and perfumes. It's every girl's wet dream," Caroline says rather dramatically.

Laughing, Nick nods, "I know the place. I've been in there with Elena before to pick out some perfume for Miranda. She gets rather excited when she's in there too."

"See, that's what I'm saying," she adds, nodding her head. "You're an attorney, right?"

"I am. I'm still half way expecting charges to be filed against Elena for her little rendezvous with Damon."

"That isn't going to happen. We convinced the police that it was all a practical joke. Between you and me, I think Damon is more than a little smitten with Elena."

"Really? That's interesting." After pausing for several minutes, he asks, "There's a little coffee shop a couple of blocks away. I know you said you'd had enough caffeine but they have other drinks that might interest you?"

"I would love to," she adds, winking at him as she stands up.

"I'm just going to go outside and tell them where we're going. I'll be right back," Nick says, stepping out through the back door. Approaching Elena, he stoops down in front of her. When she looks up, he gives her a smile. "Caroline and I are going to the coffee shop. We'll be back a little later."

"You like her?"

"I do."

"I have some errands to run. Her car is at my place if you wouldn't mind dropping her off later...?"

"Of course," he adds with a twinkle in his eye. Standing up, he says goodbye to Miranda and then walks into the house. After making sure his wallet is in his pocket, he gently nudges Caroline to the door. When he presses his palm against her lower back, he can't help but smile at the jolt of electricity he feels. As soon as they're outside, Caroline waves goodbye to Elena then links her arm with Nick, the two of them walking down the side walk side by side.

* * *

After a long day of getting nowhere with Elena's case and work and with it being Friday, Damon pulls onto the long driveway leading up to his dad's ranch. He bought it about a year ago with plans for he and Liz to live out here full time. With the housing market down, they haven't sold their house in the city yet. As soon as they find a buyer, they'll move to the ranch full time and commute into Denver. For now, they spend weekends, holidays and summer vacations out here. But both he and Liz love the solitude of country living. Once he reaches the house, he parks and gets out of his car. As soon as he opens the door, he's knocked on his ass by Gus.

"Woah boy," Damon laughs, rough housing with the dog for a little bit. Hearing the commotion, Liz walks into the foyer and starts to laugh herself.

"Okay, Gus, let Damon up," she says, taking a hold of his collar to pull him back. Once Damon is on his feet, he bends over and pets the dog some more.

"I'll take you for a run after while," Damon tells him, ruffing his head once more before following Liz into the kitchen. After pouring Damon a glass of lemonade, she turns down the heat on the burner and then sits down too. Taking a swallow of her lemonade, she sets it down and clutches the glass.

"What is it, Liz?" Damon asks, refilling his glass.

"A couple of things actually. First, I though you should know that Andie is leaving. She and her fiancé are moving to Chicago."

"Really? We don't have any field offices there though right?"

"No, we don't. She's going to be a stay at home mom she told me. Are you okay with all of this... I mean, given how things ended between you and all?" she asks, looking at him with concern on her face.

"I'm fine, Liz. It hurt at first when she told me she cheated but I'm over it. I don't harbor any ill will towards her but I don't care if I never see her again either. I feel nothing where she's concerned."

"I'm glad," she says, giving his hand a squeeze.

"Now what else did you want to talk about?"

"Bill, I think he's finally realized that he has a daughter. He was at the office again the other day when you and Brady were on site at the train derailment. I think he wants to help you as a way to earn some points with her."

"I gathered as much. I'm still waiting for the tapes from Slater. I don't know what's going on with him but he sent me blank ones."

"That is strange. He's never done anything like that before. If they don't come by Monday, let me know and I'll call Mack in DC myself."

"Thanks Liz, I really appreciate it. I guess I'll go take Gus out for that walk now," Damon adds, finishing off his lemonade before standing up and walking out of the room, leaving Liz behind to finish supper. After leashing the dog, Damon approaches the forest out behind his dad's house. Even though it's summer, they're at a higher elevation so the evenings are a bit nippy. As they walk into the tree line, he can feel the leaves brushing against his arms and hears the crows chirping as they move further away from the house. Raising his head, he lets the still warm rays of sunshine dance across his face. Patches of blue sky poke though the tree cover as he lets Gus lead him towards the lake that sits on the western edge of his father's property.

Coming across a Pin Cherry tree, Damon pops a few berries into his mouth. As soon as they reach the lake, Damon lets him off of his leash to play in the water which he regrets as soon as Gus shakes himself out, drenching Damon's clothes. A loud laugh leaves his mouth when Gus does it a second time. When a breeze starts to blow whitecaps on the water, he stands up and leashes the dog again. Although he has to tug at first to get him to come, he finally follows his commands and the two of them head back to the house, but not before plopping a few more cherries into his mouth.

* * *

After getting cleaned up, Damon says goodbye to Liz then walks out of the house. When he meets his father outside, they say a few words then he gets into his car, waving goodbye as he backs out of the driveway. Glancing at his watch, he sees it's only about six o'clock so he makes the turn towards Evergreen to accidentally on purpose to see Elena again. Once he pulls into town, Damon stops at the Panda restaurant and grabs some carryout. With food and a six pack, Damon drives to her house. Although he doesn't know why, he wonders what he'll do if she's already entertaining someone, a guy friend in particular. Driving slowly, he turns onto her street, breathing a sigh of relief when he doesn't see any cars in front of her house or parked in the driveway.

Hoping she'll be okay with him just showing up, he gets out the car, grabs the food and drink and walks to her front door. With his hands full, he uses his elbow to ring the doorbell. Moments later, it opens and there she is, parted lips morphing into a smile in seconds.

"Damon, hi. Um is that for us?" she asks, pointing to the food in his arms.

"It is, if you'll have me?"

"Yes, of course, come on in. As soon as he steps inside, she closes the door and leads him to the dining room. Setting the Chinese and the six pack down, Damon raises his eyes to hers.

"I hope you don't mind, Elena. I.. I just wanted to see you. Um, I got the package from Washington but I still didn't get the black box data. Liz is going to call my guy's superiors if they don't come tomorrow."

"That's really kind of you to drive all this way to tell me," she adds, giving him a wide smile. "I'm just going to get some plates. Have a seat." As soon as she walks out, he pulls the containers out of the bag and opens a can of beer, taking a deep pull. Looking around, he sees pictures in her china cabinet. He recognizes Captain Gilbert, Elena and her mother but not the other guy. In another picture is Nick and Elena. Still another is one of just her and the young man that he doesn't recognize. Hearing footsteps, he turns around, unable to mask the smile that forms on his face.

"Have a seat," she tells him. Nodding, Damon pulls out a chair for her and then sits down beside her. Setting his bottle of beer down, he takes the Garlic chicken from her and puts some on his plate.

"Caroline was here earlier today," Elena mentions, stuffing a bite of beef with broccoli into her mouth.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Damon laughs, reaching for the broccoli beef himself.

"She wanted to see Nick again. Actually she left just before you got here. Since her car was here, he dropped her off after they spent the day together."

"He seems like a nice enough guy? We're the same age but I feel kind of like the protective older brother," Damon adds, their eyes meeting.

"That's how Nick is with me too but he's a little older. He came to live with us when his father died. His mom ran off when he was a kid, they never saw her again. The grandparents were deceased too so my parents adopted him but he kept his born name. I love him very much as I'm sure you do Caroline."

"I do. Feel free to tell me it's none of my business but who is the other guy in the pictures?" Damon watches as an almost invisible shadow crosses over her face. He can see pain, the same type of pain that is always with him. She pauses for a long moment and then takes a deep breath before starting to speak.

"That's my brother Jeremy. He died a few years ago. It was a dark and stormy night. Thunder was roaring, lightening illuminating the sky, streaking across the horizon. There were gale force winds, enough to topple trees. He wasn't even that far from home. Even though mom told him to stay put, he knew that she and I were home alone and terrified of storms so he...," she pauses, dropping her eyes for a moment. He feels bad for asking when he hears her sniffle.

"I'm sorry, Elena. I didn't mean to bring up something painful for you."

"It's alright, I want you to know.. He was actually at a friend's house. They live on a ranch a few miles from here. Apparently they didn't realize the storm was as bad as it was. They were almost here when their car hydroplaned and crashed into a tree. Jeremy died instantly," she adds, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I'm so sorry that I brought it up," Damon adds, reaching across the table to take her hand in his.

"Please don't apologize, Damon. You lost your brother too. You know how hard it is."

"I do," he adds, smiling sadly at her.

"I'm sure you know all too well how hard it is to move on but my father wouldn't let us fall prey to the grief as it were. He knew that Jeremy wouldn't want our family to fall apart so he made us get up each day and live."

"It wasn't quite that easy for dad and me cause mom died in the crash too but he made sure I had as normal a life as possible. It was really after Liz and Caroline came into our lives that the healing really started. I miss them every day but I know that they would want me to live too. Some days are harder than others as I'm sure you're well aware."

"I am indeed," Elena adds, taking a swallow of her own beer.

Sitting in companionable silence, Damon hopes that he can find something that might help her. He would never falsify a report but if there's something that he missed the first time around, he'll correct the record. The first thing he's going to do Monday morning is find out what's up with Slater and why he hasn't gotten those recordings yet.

* * *

 _Tremendous thank you to Eva, my muse, my best friend, my co-pilot in the Delena universe._

 _Humungous thanks to each and everyone of you. Thank you so much for coming along on this and every Delena journey with me._

 _Chapter title: 'What A Feeling' by Irene Cara from "Flashdance"._

 _Reviews inspire the muse._

 _Have a safe and phenomenal day and thank you again._


	10. Getting to Know You

Scrubbing his hand down his face, Damon painstakingly goes through each and every piece of paper related to the Gilbert case. It irks him even more than he can't seem to get in touch with Slater. Either he gets put on hold or told that he isn't available. Even Liz got nowhere when she called Mack in DC. Feeling something welling in his gut, Damon can't shake the feeling that there's something here to find but something is missing, some clue, some piece of evidence, something just waiting for him to find it. He went through these same reports with a fine tooth comb when the investigation into flight 1042 after it crashed into a mountain, shattering the lives of both the living and the dead. And that thought leads to another, leads to her, and all Damon can do is wonder how he'll break it to her if he can't find the answers that she desperately wants him to find.

Turning to look out of the window, he focuses on a robin that perches itself on one of the branches of a big Oak tree. Staring at it, he can't help but imagine what it would be like to be able to soar across a clear blue sky without having to sit inside a steel contraption. Airplanes are an amazing piece of technological achievement. He's loved airplanes and flying for as long as he can remember. As a youngster, he even thought about becoming a pilot himself. But that was before Stefan and his mom perished in the crash of flight 232. Damon then knew what he wanted to do it for a living. While in college, he got his license to fly small aircraft, both plane and helicopter. Although he doesn't use his license much, he does occasionally take a plane into the air if he needs some solitude. With his gaze unmoving, he startles slightly when _'Girls Just Want to Have Fun'_ begins to play. Dropping his chin to his chest, he rolls his eyes before picking it up. "Caroline?"

 _"Hey! I was hoping that we could have lunch? I just finished a meeting with the higher ups so I'm close."_

Dropping his forehead into his palm, he blows out a puff of air. Even though he's not hungry and not in the mood for incessant cheeriness, he hates having to disappoint her.

 _"Yoo-hoo, Damon? I'm waiting," she says._

"Look, Care. I would love to have lunch with you but I have to go to the train derailment site with Brady."

 _"He can join us."_

"I'm sorry, Caroline. I can't today," he says, trying not to take his frustration out on her.

 _"Okay... If you can't have lunch then you have to promise that you'll stop at my place after work. I'll make us supper."_

"You can't boil water, Caroline?"

 _"Don't be mean. I promise that you won't starve. Please, Damon... for me?"_

"Sure, I'll get there as soon as I can. Bye, Care," he says, clicking off the phone before she monopolizes anymore of his time. Almost at the same moment, he hears a knock. Looking up, he breathes a sigh of relief when he sees that it's Brady.

"You ready to go?" he asks, stepping through the door. Nodding, Damon slides the Gilbert file back into his top drawer, locks it and then follows his friend outside to the helipad. Once they're airborne, Damon is grateful to be able to think about something else if only for a little while.

* * *

As soon as they get back to headquarters, Brady follows Damon to his office. Not long after, Liz interrupts with a pizza box and six pack of Coke in hand. After cleaning off the top of his desk, Liz sets everything down. Pulling up a chair, she hands them each a can and tells them to help themselves. Taking a big bite, Damon licks the tomato sauce from the corners of his mouth then follows it with a long slog of Coke. Once they finish, Damon gets up to wash his hands before digging into the file again, this time, going over what he knows with Liz and Brady.

"Liz, did Mack know anything? Something is definitely amiss with Slater. He promised that he'd send me those recordings. He's always been at the top of his game and for him to suddenly be incommunicado, I can't help but wonder what's going on with him."

"Maybe he's dealing with something personal but that's no excuse for not doing his job. Mack told me that he'd have a word with him," Liz adds, finishing off her slice of pizza.

"So, Damon, have you heard anymore from Captain Gilbert's daughter?" Brady asks, winking at Liz.

"Um, she's good. I saw her last night as a matter of fact," Damon replies, trying to maintain an air of nonchalance.

"If you want my opinion on the matter, I think a kidnapping being the first meeting will be a great story to tell your kids someday," Brady laughs, even harder when he sees Damon's eyes nearly pop out of his head. Stunned into silence and not knowing how he should respond, Damon's opens and closes his mouth a couple of times before wadding up his napkin and launching it, hitting Brady between the eyes.

"Come on man, it's obvious that you're attracted to her. I mean you let her get away with kidnapping you. Seriously Damon, she did act a little unhinged so you're lucky she didn't use that gun on you," he blurts out, unable to stop the roar of laughter that escapes. Again he's at a loss as to how to respond especially when he doesn't miss the way Liz's eyes widen when the word kidnapping leaves Brady's mouth. Choosing to let it go, Damon stands up, pretends to slip, spilling his coke down Brady's front.

"What the hell?"

"Oops," Damon cackles, laughing so hard that he has to bend over when it hurts his belly. When their eyes meet, Brady can't help but laugh too.

"Watch your back, buddy," he warns lightheartedly before leaving the office to change shirts. Liz shakes her head.

"You two act like children sometimes, you do know that right?"

"He started it," Damon retorts, waggling his brows teasingly at her.

"You and that eye thing," Liz starts to say, stopping when her secretary peaks in and tells her that she has a phone call from DC. Telling the woman that she'll be right behind her, she faces Damon, "Did the Gilbert girl literally kidnap you?"

"Liz..., I," he starts to say, his voice catching in his throat.

Knowing that she has a phone call, she raises his chin so he has to look at her. "We are going to talk about this," she adds, then leaves the room, pulling Damon's door shut behind her.

* * *

Tired and lamenting the fact that he agreed to have supper with Caroline, Damon pulls onto the road. Further frustrating to him is the fact that traffic is backed up, likely as a result of an accident. Raking his hands through his wind blown hair, he steps on the brake again. As seconds blur into minutes, Damon is almost tempted to tell her he'll come tomorrow but then the traffic picks up and moves at a relatively decent pace. Reaching for his water bottle, he takes a long pull. Dropping the now empty bottle on the seat beside him, Damon switches on the radio, stopping when he reaches the oldies channel. Even though he's listening to his favorite station, his mind is chaotic. How on earth is he going to try to explain to Liz what Elena did without making her think that Elena is certifiable? He's grateful that he didn't have to get into it with her today.

With a yawn leaving his mouth, Damon would still drive to Evergreen in a heartbeat if he had anything new to relay to her. But he doesn't and as much as he'd like nothing more than to either see her or jump into a nice hot shower, instead he makes the next left turn and pulls to stop in front of Caroline's place.

When he sees Bill Forbe's convertible, he drops his face into his hands. Although he's more than tempted to just drive away, he knows that Caroline will never let him hear the end of it. Turning off the ignition, he gets out of the car. Slowly he walks up the sidewalk and up the three steps of her porch. "Run Damon," he says to himself, his voice barely a whisper. Just as he starts to back away, the door flies open, Caroline latches onto his forearm and pulls him into the house.

"Why didn't you tell me that your dad was here?" he asks angrily. Glaring at her, he pulls his arm free of her grasp and turns on his heels to leave.

"Don't go, Damon. You promised."

"You know very well that I would have said no if I knew you were scheming."

"He wants to help, please Damon?" she asks. When he sees Bill standing in the doorway, he looks down at their now joined hands. With a subtle nod to her, he lets her lead him back into the house, After pushing the door closed, Caroline links their arms and pulls him into the kitchen. "Sit down. What do you want to drink?"

"Something strong," he adds, shaking his head back and forth.

"Look Damon, Caroline told me what she knows about the case. You're trying to clear the girl's father of his culpability in the crash?"

"I resent that, Bill. It doesn't matter how much I may or may not like someone, I would never, ever change a report unless there was evidence to support such a change."

"Calm down, Damon," he starts to say, raising his hands in the surrender posture. "I didn't mean to imply any such thing. Let's start over here, shall we?"

"What is this about, Bill?"

"I want to help Caroline, that's all."

After staring at him for a few seconds, Damon raises his gaze to Caroline and then nods, throwing back what's in his tumbler of bourbon as soon as she hands it to him. After Caroline sits down between the two men, Damon takes a breath and starts to talk about the case. "When we arrived on site, there was wreckage everywhere, body parts, twisted and charred metal, no survivors. Despite having seen such carnage many times already, I'll never get used to it," Damon says, his voice trailing off as he loses his train of thought.

"Damon," Caroline whispers, taking his hand, she links their fingers to let him know that she loves him. Placing his free hand on top of hers, he forces a smile and gives her a nod.

"Just as a visual, it seemed pretty obvious that he started his descent to land but he chose the San Juan mountains and rather than land safely, he crashed into the mountainside."

"What do you think he did wrong?" Bill asks, taking a sip of his own bourbon.

"He shouldn't have begun his descent quite so soon. If he had waited, he would have cleared the mountain range and perhaps he could've landed on one of those little airport runways that dot the landscape on that side of the state."

"From what I know about the Pellicos Aeronautics A320 airbus, given the design of its undercarriage, he doomed the plane when he began his descent at the first sign of trouble. Often there's a way to correct the problems while in flight as you well know."

"I know that, Bill. And as you know, when and were to land is the pilot's decision but this was the wrong one. It's the main reason why not only myself but also the others on my team came to the conclusion that it was pilot error. When we went over all of the evidence, it was obvious that it wasn't good timing, the angle of the descent as well as the place he chose to land were all amateur mistakes," Damon explains. Standing up, he opens Caroline's refrigerator and pulls out a bottle of water. After taking a sip, he adds, "Brady and I listened to the recordings as soon as they were available. The co-pilot can clearly be heard asking, "What are you doing?"

"From my point of view, it sounds like pilot error too. Caroline has told me that both of you are fond of Captain Gilbert's daughter, but what I don't understand is why you're even reopening the case. It sounds like it's pretty cut and dry?"

"Because I want to give her some peace of mind. And before you imply anything, Bill, I told her that I would only change my report IF I find something that exonerates her father. In going over the files, I haven't found anything new. But, Bill, I know first hand what it's like to lose a family member to an airline disaster. It never goes away and even if at the end of the day, I come up empty handed at least she'll know that someone cared enough to listen to her concerns. And in addition to that, we can't be sure about the initial reason for the plane's problems. The black boxes were badly damaged by the ensuing fire. We concluded that there was multiple sensor failure but the plane wasn't in complete instrument failure. It was controllable otherwise he wouldn't have been able to begin the descent."

"I understand," he says, smiling at Caroline. When Damon looks at her, he sees that she's absolutely beaming. Even though it seems that Bill is being genuine here, Damon doesn't trust him not to hurt her. After Caroline serves them the tray of sub sandwiches she brought home from Subway, Bill excuses himself to go home. Damon cleans off the table while Caroline walks outside with her dad. Several minutes pass before she comes back inside, smiling when she sees that Damon is washing the dishes.

"You didn't have to do that, Damon. I appreciate it though."

"Be careful, Caroline. Despite what you may think, I don't want to see you get hurt."

"He's my dad, Damon. I love him."

"I know you love him but I still remember when he left when we were kids. I remember laying in bed, you under the covers, me on top, but you would cry yourself to sleep. We're too big, we can't sleep together anymore," he teases.

Slugging him on the shoulder, she rolls her eyes. After hanging up the damp towel, she leans in next to him. Speaking of sleeping over, since you've been drinking, do you want to stay here? That's one of the reasons I bought a sleeper sofa."

Throwing his arm around her shoulder, they retreat to the living room to get the couch ready for Damon. When they're done, they plop down on it, turn on the TV, both dozing off while watching one of her favorite movies.

* * *

Even though Liz has tried her hardest, headquarters in Washington is still moving at a snail's pace. Taking off his glasses, Damon rubs his eyes. He keeps looking over the stats on the train derailment but he's not quite ready to officially label any causative factors yet. Blowing out a breath, he puts his glasses back on, pulls his pencil from behind his ear and starts doing some calculations. When he finishes, he turns to his laptop to go over them. Clicking on another program, he looks at the schematics of the accident sight as well as an animation that Brady put together of the train wreck. Watching it intently, he sees it chugging along when suddenly it jumps the track. He and Brady walked some distance along the tracks but didn't find anything out of the ordinary but he can see that they'll have to go back and do it again, this time taking an engineer with them in case they missed something.

Yawning, he gets up to refill his cup of coffee. After taking a swallow he tops it off and then sits back down. When he inadvertently glances at his phone, he sets his mug down. Picking up the phone, he stares at it for a minute and then decides to just call her. Before he can even push one of the keys, it starts to ring. Seeing who it is, a smile forms, lighting up his face. "Hello, Elena."

 _"Hi Damon, I really don't have a reason for calling you other than the fact that um.. I'd like to invite you to come to dinner. The Delta Aquarids meteor shower is supposed to put on quite a show tonight. I thought maybe you'd like to watch it with me?"_

"You like astronomy?"

 _"My dad was fascinated by it. We used to go camping in the mountains during the Perseid and Leonid meteor showers every year. I've loved sky watching ever since."_

"Well, Elena, quite honestly, that sounds like a great way to forget about life for a few hours. I'd love to join you but why don't you let me pick up something to eat."

 _"Contrary to popular belief, I do know my way around the kitchen. Besides, I was going to grill some swordfish steaks."_

"Can I at least bring a bottle of wine, seafood appropriate of course?" he teases.

 _"That you can do. I'll see you later then, Damon. Bye now"_

"Bye, Elena," he adds, softly clicking off the phone.

* * *

"Can I help you with anything?" Damon asks, following her into the kitchen.

"I just put the swordfish on the grill so you can go check on that if you want. But you can take these with you," Elena says, handing him a couple of plates and silverware. Nodding, he goes outside, leaving her alone for a moment. Staring at his fine, sadly retreating backside, she feels a shiver rip through her center. Brushing a strand behind her ear, she takes a breath then reaches into the refrigerator to pull out the salad made. Before joining Damon she pulls a couple of wine stems out of the cupboard then goes outside, smiling when she sees him turning the fish.

"It smells good," Elena mentions.

"I like grilled Tuna but I've never eaten swordfish. This will be a treat," Damon adds, winking at her. After arranging the table and filling the wine glasses, she walks over to him. Taking the spatula, she plates their fish and then turns the gas off on the grill. With a nod, they walk over to the table. Pulling the chair out, he lets her sit down then sits himself, scooting his chair close. "You have a great view of the sky. We should have a nice view of the meteor shower," he adds, pointing at the telescope that she has aimed skyward.

"We won't need the telescope. They're be drifting across the sky. However, the second quarter moon may block most of the fainter meteors but we should be able to catch some good ones."

"I'm chomping at the bit," Damon laughs, taking a bite of the swordfish, savoring the flavor as it erupts on his tongue. "This is really good," he mumbles, taking another quick bite. Picking up his wine glass, he swallows it down. Finishing up his plate, he helps her carry the food back inside. By the time they're done cleaning up the dishes, the sky is dark. Walking back outside, they sit back down and focus their attention on the sky as the meteors start blazing a trail across the expanse of the twinkling dark sky.

When his hand brushes against hers, he can't not latch onto it. Her gaze drifts from their conjoined hands to his eyes. Completely consumed with her, Damon leans forward at the same time she does then drops his mouth to hers. The kiss is slow and deep and long and holy hell does she taste good, he thinks to himself. Pulling away, Damon finds himself mesmerized by rhythmic heaving of her breasts. Wanting to taste her again, he cradles her face and joins their lips once more in a smoldering and sensuous kiss, so effected by it that he starts to feel the sting of the zipper against his length. When he hears his phone start to chirp, he pulls apart, wispily touching his lips with his fingertips. It's when the phone rings a second time he whispers that he's sorry but he has to take the call.

"Don't be sorry. I'll give you some privacy in case it's work," she says and walks into her house.

Now recognizing the number, he clicks it on, "Slater, where the hell have you been?" Rather than words, he hears heavy breathing. "Slater?" he repeats, feeling a little anxious himself.

 _"Damon.. the tape.."_

* * *

 _Massive thanks to my dearest friend Eva._

 _Gargantuan-sized thanks to all of your for your support, friendship, and reviews. It really means a lot to me._

 _Chapter title: "Getting to Know You" from the musical, "The King and I"._

 _Please have a look at EOT and SF._

 _I started working a new WW2 era historical drama. It's called "Tomorrow" taken from the song of the same name by "Europe". I hope when it's ready to post you'll love this version of DE as much as I do already._

 _I do have a facebook page for my stories. The address is in my profile. There are pictorials for my stories there if you're interested including one for "Tomorrow"._

 _I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. Thank you all again. We'll see you next time._


	11. Dim All The Lights

"Slater?" Damon asks at the same time that he hears the phone go dead. Staring at it for several seconds, he finally clicks it off. This is all very perplexing he thinks to himself. The words "the tape" hover in Damon's mind. There's a gnawing feeling growing in his gut that something is wrong. He knows that he went through all of the evidence repeatedly at the time of the initial investigation but still, this is all very suspicious to him. He finds himself wishing that he could've met Elena under different circumstances. Still, he can't bring himself to regret their rather untoward introduction because maybe there is something to find in the Gilbert case after all? But then he realizes that Slater only said the word tape, he didn't say which tape. Maybe he was calling on something else completely unrelated to this case. Shaking his head, Damon is so lost in his thoughts that he startles when he feels her hand on his shoulder.

Seeing the confused look on his face, she asks, "Is everything okay?"

"I don't know. My friend mentioned the tape but then the line went dead." Looking down at his watch, he sighs, seeing that it's quite late. As much as he'd like nothing more than to worship her gorgeous body till the sun comes up, Damon knows he has to leave. Whatever is building between them, he doesn't want to ruin it by pushing her.

"Was it about my dad's case?"

"That would be my best guess but I don't know, Elena. I really don't."

"I guess there's nothing to be done about it tonight," she adds, blowing out a breath of air.

"I don't suppose you'd walk me to my car?" he asks, taking her hand in his and bringing it to his lips. Holding it there for several seconds, he lets go, leaning in to take her lips in an ardent kiss, so incredible that his heart starts to pound against his ribcage.

When they break apart, Damon takes her hand again, the two of them walk around her house, stopping at Damon's car. Needing one more, he threads his fingers into the mahogany curtain of her hair. Cupping her neck, he pulls her close and drops his mouth to hers. The kiss is long, slow and deep and enough to make her insides sear with heat so intense that goosebumps erupt on her skin. Breaking apart, Damon smiles when he sees her breathless. "Goodnight, Elena."

"Goodnight," she says softly. Once he's behind the wheel, he starts the car but doesn't drive off until she's safely inside of her house. Gripping the steering wheel hard, he glances towards her house, unable to stop the smile that forms when he sees her peering out from behind the curtain. After waving at her, he turns on the engine, backs out of her driveway and leaves for home.

* * *

After a night of tossing and turning, Damon runs by Starbucks on the way to work. With the carrier in his hand, he goes into the building and directly to Liz's office. "Good morning, Jessica. Is she busy?"

"No, but let me get her door for you," she adds. Standing up, she lets him into the office.

"Thanks Jess," he adds, setting the coffee down on Liz's desk.

"What's this?" Liz asks, taking the cup that Damon offers her.

Raising his finger, he walks back and shuts her door. Taking a cup himself, he takes a swallow and then sits down. "I got a call from Slater last night. He said, "Damon, the tape," and then the line went dead. He never called back... I tried to call him back several times after I left Elena but every call went to voicemail. Something isn't right, Liz. I can feel it," he adds, his mind drifting to Elena and the kiss they shared and how right it felt. Although he needs to talk to Slater, he could choke him for interrupting his moment with Elena. But then he thinks that what if something is going on with him? Damon has known him for years. He used to work here in Denver until he took the promotion that he was offered and moved to Washington DC.

Picking up the phone, Liz remarks, "I'm calling Mack to see if he knows anything."

Nodding, Damon takes another swallow of his coffee, turning around, he waves Brady over when he sees him peak in. Since he brought four coffees, he motions for him to help himself. Sitting down beside Damon, he leans in and asks what's going on when he sees Liz shush him with her finger. As quietly as he can so as not to interrupt Liz, Damon explains the mysterious phone call he got from Slater last night. Confused himself, Brady agrees that it was indeed strange.

"Thanks Mack, keep me up to speed," Liz says then hangs up the phone.

"You're right, Damon. Something is definitely going on. Slater was nowhere to be found. Apparently he didn't show up for work this morning."

"There's no case that he might need to be on sight for?"

"No, Mack said he should've been in his work area. His co-worker, Hayley told Mack that he's been edgy and quiet the last couple of weeks."

"Now I'm worried about him, Liz."

"I am too, but there's nothing we can do from here. I promise that I'll call you if I hear anything. Not to change the subject but weren't you two going to go to the train derailment site again today?" she asks, taking another long pull from her coffee cup.

"Yep," Brady says, adding, "We should get going, Damon."

Nodding, Damon gets up, following Brady to the door. "Don't forget to call, Liz. It's important."

"I will," she adds, watching as them walk out of her office. Stepping around her desk, she pushes her door closed. Leaning against it, she, like Damon, can't seem to shake the feeling that something is very wrong with Slater.

* * *

Resting her chin on her palms, Elena stares at her computer. Every time she puts her fingers on the keyboard, her mind inexplicably drifts back to him. Without even realizing it and still wanting to feel the energy that runs between them, Elena wispily touches her lips with her fingertips. In her mind, she feels each of his kisses over and over as if it's a film reel, repeatedly replaying the scene. Shivering, she pushes her chair back and stands up. Walking over to the sink, she grips the kitchen counter. Staring outside, she focuses on a Monarch Butterfly that's hovering above her Iris flowers. It's beautiful and for a moment she's mesmerized by it, that is until the doorbell rings. Taking a breath, she releases her grip and walks to the door. Pulling it open, she's surprised to see Caroline standing in front of her.

"Caroline, hi. Come in," she says, stepping aside. Once Caroline walks over the threshold, Elena pushes the door closed. With the air conditioner running, she doesn't want to let the hot air in. "Is there something you wanted?"

"No, I'm just on my way over to see Nik. He's taking me on a picnic. Said it would be very romantic and all," Caroline says, giving Elena a wink.

"Romantic ha?" she laughs, leading her friend into the living room. "Do you want something cold to drink?"

Glancing at her watch, she nods, "Sure, I have time." Smiling, Elena goes into the kitchen and pulls out two bottles of watermelon water.

"What's this?"

"It's really good, Caroline, very refreshing," Elena says, taking a swallow herself.

"Yes, it is. I'm going to have to get some for myself," she adds. With her eyes twinkling, she continues, "I haven't seen Damon for several days. Every time I try to catch him at home, the house is empty." When she sees the blush begin to bloom on Elena's face, she has all the confirmation she needs. Smiling, she takes another swallow of her drink. Before she can comment, her phone rings. It's a text from Nik wondering where she is. After texting him that she's on her way, she politely says goodbye leaving Elena to wonder what the heck just happened.

* * *

Tired after walking several miles along the tracks, Damon and Brady too are frustrated by the time they get back to the office. Having found nothing mechanically wrong that would've led to the derailment, they'll have to have their experts go over the internals of the engine. Seeing that Liz is still in her office, Damon breaks away from Brady and walks in after a quick rap on her door.

"Nothing?" Damon asks, plopping down into a chair.

"Not yet. But since you're here, why don't you tell me about the kidnapping," she asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Liz, come on, it's over and done with. No harm, no foul."

"Damon, talk."

"Must I?" he whines, dropping his chin to his chest.

"Damon, quit stalling."

"She was desperate to have me look into her dad's case again. Desperate people do desperate things, Liz. She took me to her house," he explains, purposely leaving out the little detail about the gun. "But as I said, no harm no foul. So please don't say anything to dad. I don't want him to freak out. After _they_ died, he got pretty overprotective. You know this."

"How can you ask me to keep something like this from him?"

"Because I'm nuts about her. I want to see where it goes so please, Liz.. don't make waves."

"You really care about her?"

"Yes," Damon adds, their eyes meeting. Seeing the sincerity in them, she nods.

"Just be careful, okay?"

Bobbing his head slightly, he points towards the door adding, "I'm just going to go my office for a bit." Standing up, he gives her a kiss on the cheek, whispering thank you. As soon as he gets to his office, he turns on his computer. When he starts to read the same paragraph for the umpteenth time, he turns it off. Wanting, no needing to see her, he's grateful that it's the end of the day. After picking up his phone, he locks his office then hurries down the hall. Apparently Liz has the same idea cause she's locking hers just as he reaches it. Walking outside with her, she explains that she tried calling Mack once more but he was gone for the afternoon. With nothing new to go on, Damon tells her goodnight, then hops in his car, the drive to Evergreen and seeing her again is the only thing on his mind.

* * *

Glancing up at the clock for the millionth time in the last hour, Elena drops her chin to her chest in frustration. Between looking at it and checking her phone for something, anything from Damon, she realizes what a sap she's being albeit a romantic one. She's never felt so discombobulated around a man before. It's so out of character for her. Having no other recourse, she looks up once more. Seeing that it's already after nine, she retreats to her bathroom to shower and shave her legs.

When she finishes washing her hair, she steps out of the shower. Once it's dry, she throws it into a messy bun. Staring at herself in the mirror, she can't help but wonder how Damon Salvatore wormed his way into her entire being. She can't deny her attraction to him nor the way her body comes alive at his touch. Given the way he kissed her, she thinks or at least hopes he's feeling some of the same. Sighing, she slips into a cami and a pair of sleep shorts. Not yet ready to go to bed, she puts on her robe and then trots downstairs. Walking into the kitchen, she pulls out a Seagram's Pink Pineapple Passion Escape, twists off the top and takes a deep pull. Leaning against the sink, she takes another swallow. Not that she really wants to but no matter how hard she tries, she can't see to strike him from her mind. Feeling a shiver, she takes another swallow, her mind still focused on only him. Hearing the sound of her doorbell snaps her out of her reverie. But at the thought that maybe it's him, her heart starts pounding wildly.

Swallowing thickly, she looks through the peep hole, a smile already on her face when she pulls open the door. Damon is immediately awestruck at her appearance. Her robe is hanging open allowing Damon a nice view of her nipples straining against the silky material of her top. Seeing where his gaze is focused, Elena makes a move to tie her robe but stops when Damon catches her wrists and pulls her flush against his body. Before she can close the door, his mouth is on hers. Leaving her lips, he blazes a trail of electricity down her jaw, to that spot just behind her ear and down her neck and finally to the top of her breasts. When she inadvertently notices that the door is still wide open, she pulls back. When she moves to close it, Damon is on her again, slowly backing her up till the door clicks shut.

"Damon," she breathes, her whole body tingling and alight with electricity.

Needing a breath himself, Damon steps back just slightly. "I can't stop thinking about you, Elena. You've turned my world upside down."

"I can't stop thinking about you either," she confesses, a ghost of a smile forming on her beautiful face. Placing his palm against the side of her cheek, he caresses it gently. "I couldn't go to bed without seeing your face again." Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he adds softly, "I don't want to go home, Elena."

Rather than say anything, she laces their fingers together and leads him up the stairs and into her room. Without wasting even a moment, she relaxes her shoulders, letting her robe fall to the floor. Wanting to be bold, she steps in front of him and starts to unbutton his shirt. Once she pushes it off his arms, she unclasps the metal button on his jeans and pushes them to the floor. Standing only in his boxers, Damon gently uses his fingers to lift her camisole over her head, revealing her perfect bosom to him. Unable to deny himself, he cups them while using his thumbs to stroke her nipples erect.

"I want you to make love to me," Elena rasps, her voice already thick and seductive sounding. Finding himself almost hypnotized by the power of her gaze, he drops his mouth to her breast and his hands to her hips. He massages them with his fingers and thumb as his mouth suckles greedily on one breast and then the other. At the same time, he walks her backwards towards the bed. As soon as the backs of her legs brush up against the mattress, Damon pulls away, his mouth blazing a trail of heat down her jaw and to that spot behind her ear. Pushing him back just slightly, she pulls his straining boxers down, letting his erection spring free. Sucking in a breath, he does the same, removing her sleep shorts. He drops to the floor when he sees that her folds are already glistening with moisture. He lifts one of her legs over his shoulder and then while supporting her with his arms, he laves his tongue across her heated flesh.

"Oh my God," Elena moans, feeling her other knee wanting to buckle. As Damon continues to taste her, she presses herself against his mouth as that magical appendage brings her to the brink of orgasm already. Having never been on the receiving end of something quite this wonderful, she topples over the edge, collapsing on top of him as he licks her nectar greedily.

"I've wanted you for so long already," Damon admits, holding onto her as he rises up. Even though they're at the bedside, he takes her into his arms and captures her lips, letting her taste the essence that is her.

"Me too," she whimpers once their mouths part.

Laying her gently onto the mattress, he lowers himself over her. Their eyes meet and then he lowers his mouth, taking her lips in a scorching kiss. Reaching down, Elena starts to stroke him, feeling a sense of empowerment by the look that washes over his face. The only thing she wants in this moment is to feel him inside of her so she lets go for a moment. After wrapping her fingers around him again, she rubs the head up and down her heated flesh, paying special attention to her already engorged bundle of nerves.

"I'm going to come, Elena. I want to be inside of you... Condom?"

Nodding, she points to her bedside table. Pulling one out, he hands it to her. She tears the packet with her teeth, rolling it on him with precision. As soon as their eyes meet, Damon pulls her mouth to his again, tilting her face to deepen the kiss. Panting she pulls away, wraps her hand around his considerable length and positions him right where she wants him. When their eyes meet, he slides inside, nearly melting at the exquisiteness that is her. Damon moves in and out with purpose. What strikes him the most is the feeling of being _complete_ and at _home_ in her body.

"More, Damon," she groans. When she leans back and arches her hips, Damon instinctively knows what she wants. Even though he's never been with her before, he senses that she's close by the way her breaths come out in gasps and by the way her mouth is slightly parted as he continues to move within her. Feeling the heat in his belly and lower back begin to expand and burn even hotter, he captures her lips in a long, slow and deep smoldering kiss. Hearing her moans and words asking for still more, he drives deeper within her until he hears her cry out his name. Within a matter of seconds he feels her body tighten as she reaches her completion. One more pivotal thrust is all it takes, he flies, his body convulsing with unbridled pleasure.

Collapsing over her, he rests his forehead in the space between her breasts. Feeling her heart hammering wildly, he sighs blissfully when she threads her fingers through his sweat dampened hair. When he can feel his legs again, he rolls to the side and pulls her tightly into his arms. Laying together, Elena raises up on an elbow. After brushing a loose strand of hair off of his forehead, she stares at him for a minute then latches on his lips again. When he raises a brow playfully, she whispers, "I want more." Unable to deny her anything, Damon spends the rest of the night making love to her, fulfilling her deepest desires before exhaustion pulls them both into slumber.

* * *

The sound of thunder cracking arouses Damon from his sound sleep. Looking towards the window, he sees that it's raining and the sky is dark. Pulling the covers up, he shifts his gaze to her. Smiling at how right it felt to be with her, Damon wispily moves a piece of hair away from her still kiss swollen lips. As he watches her sleep, he becomes aware of how deep his feelings for her are already. Just as he's about to lean forward to brush the lightest of kisses to her forehead, his phones rings. Cursing under his breath, he slides out of bed. Finding his jeans, he pulls the phone out of his back pocket and answers, his eyes drifting to Elena just as her eyelids are beginning to flutter open. Since she's already awake, he crawls back under the covers. When their eyes meet, he clicks the phone on. "Liz?" he asks, recognizing her ringtone.

 _"Turn on channel 9, Damon," she says._

"What?"

 _"Just do it," she repeats._

Seeing her TV remote laying on top of her bedside stand, Damon reaches for it and clicks on the station.

 _"Former Denver resident and NTSB Specialist, Slater Barnes, was found dead in his Washington DC apartment this morning. No details have been released," the man says before moving onto another story._

"Liz?" Damon states numbly, not wanting to believe what he just heard.

 _"I know, Damon," Liz adds. "I'm sorry I bothered you but I thought you'd want to know."_

"Thanks, Liz. I'll see you in a little while." After clicking off the phone, he drops back onto the mattress, his head swirling with the ramifications of this stunning new development.

* * *

 _Thank you, Eva. I love you very, very much._

 _Huge thanks to all of you. I really have no words to tell you all how grateful I am for your support and for your reviews._

 _Chapter title: 'Dim All The Lights' by Donna Summer_

 _Please check out my other stories. I am so excited to share "This Isn't What We Meant" and "Tomorrow" with you all._

 _Be safe and have a fantastic day and a wonderful weekend._


	12. We've Only Just Begun

"Damon, is something wrong?" Elena asks, looking at him intently.

"I don't know and that's the truth," he explains, adding, "I have to meet Liz at the office." After stealing a heady kiss from her mouth, he reluctantly gets out of bed. Picking up his jeans, he puts them on and then reaches down to grab his shirt. Once he finishes the buttons, he stoops over for his shoes. Then with a smile for her, he sits down at the edge of the bed to them on. When he feels her hand on his shoulder, he reaches over with his opposite arm and places his own on top of hers. He looks over his shoulder as he gives it a squeeze. Their eyes meet and reluctantly Damon tells her that he has to go.

"Can't you at least stay for a cup of coffee?"

"I don't want to leave this bed, Elena. I would like nothing more than to spend the next seventy two hours making love with you but I really need to go." Standing up, he takes her hands and pulls her out of bed. He holds her robe while she slides first one arm and then the other in the sleeves. Taking the tie, he cinches it around her waist then pulls her flush against him, kissing her deeply once more. When he lets go, he drops his forehead against hers, just long enough to breathe her in.

"What is it, Damon? What's happened, you're not fooling me."

"Slater Barnes. I've known him for years. He was working on the black box recordings for flight 1042."

"And now he's dead?" Elena asks, a horrified look on her face.

"And now he's dead," Damon repeats. Taking her hand in his, they walk out of the bedroom.

"What does this mean?"

"I don't know, Elena. We have no way of knowing whether his death is connected to your dad's flight."

"I understand," she says, throwing her arms over his shoulders. After giving him one last languid kiss," she lets him go and walks outside with him. Jumping behind the wheel, he rolls down the window, blows her a kiss and then puts his car in gear and drives off but not without waving goodbye.

* * *

His mind is a whir by the time he pulls into the office parking lot. As much as he didn't want to worry Elena, he can't deny that he's worried himself. If Slater was killed because of this case then is she in danger too, is he, is everyone he loves potentially in danger as well? His head is swimming with a cluster of what ifs. Shaking his head, he tries to dismisses the thought. Even though the odds probably very much favor a robbery gone bad, he still can't quite push away the niggling feeling he has in the pit of his stomach. Choosing to ignore it for now, he walks into the building and goes directly to Liz's office. He's a bit surprised to see Brady there too.

"Why are you here?" Damon asks, taking a swallow of much needed caffeine. He sits down, sharing a look with Liz before he shifts to face his friend.

"The DC police asked me to look into Slater's affairs here in Denver."

"And that's all?"

"Damon, that's all. What's got you so spooked?"

"Oh just the fact that Slater goes AWOL for days, suddenly he calls me last night, says and I quote, "Damon, the tape," then the phone goes dead. So yeah, I'm a little spooked. But then I think I'm being ridiculous because it was probably just coincidence."

"Damon, Brady," Liz interrupts pointing to the screen behind Liz. In the next moment, Mack's image appears on the video screen.

"Are you okay?" she asks, noticing how tired and pale the man looks.

"I found his body, Liz, so no, I'm not okay."

"I'm sorry, Mack," Damon says, interrupting.

"I've been up all night with the police. From what I gathered, it looks like a forced entry. I don't know if Slater walked in on him or if he, the culprit, broke in on Slater. It's still mostly a blur but his apartment was torn apart. They haven't done the autopsy yet so the cause of death hasn't been announced but there was a pool of blood around his head," Mack adds, dropping his face into his hands.

"Mack, I'm sorry you had to see that. However you should know that he called Damon but either he cut it off or someone cut it off for him. Tell him what you know," Liz adds, eyeing Damon seriously.

"He mentioned the tape but before I could even get a word out the call ended."

"The police are going through his office right now. I'll let you know if they find anything for flight 1042. If they do, I'll have it sent by overnight express."

As the group watches, Mack is interrupted by the police asking for his help. After he ends the call, Damon looks at Liz. "We don't know anymore than we knew before we talked to him. Mack didn't seem concerned about the tape so he must think it was just a robbery gone bad."

"That's what I got out of it too, Damon," Brady adds, lending his expertise.

"I guess it's stupid to jump to conclusions. As long as I'm here, I'm going to go to my office to catch up on a few things. I'll be there if you need me, Liz." Getting up, he shares a look with both of them then walks out of the room, disappearing down the hall as Brady and Liz watch.

* * *

Staring at the one sentence she's written this morning, a frustrated Elena gets up to pour herself yet another cup of coffee. It's been several months since the crash and she still hasn't been able to write anything of substance. For a moment a stray thought strikes her that maybe she should give it up for another profession. Shaking her head back and forth, she grips the edge of the sink. You, Elena Gilbert are not going to give up, do you hear me?" she chides herself. Despite her moment of temporary insanity when she kidnapped Damon, getting to know him has been the most normal she's felt since her world nearly fell apart. Raising her eyes, she says, "Hi Dad, I wish I could talk to you in person. I'm trying and I won't give up. You didn't raise a quitter but sometimes I miss you so damn much." Feeling the hint of moisture in her eyes, she suddenly feels the need for a bit of fresh air. She pulls a travel much out of the cupboard, fills it up and then walks to the front door. Picking up her keys from the foyer table, she pulls open the door, startling when she sees Nik standing in front of her.

"Nik, hi. Um, what are you doing here?"

"I came to say hi. It's been a few days," he adds, his eyes darting from her face to the keys in her hand. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Not really. I was just going to go for a walk. Would you like to join me?"

"Of course." When he goes down the steps, she locks the door and follows him down the sidewalk. Taking a sip of her coffee, she's deep in thought when she feels his arm brush against hers. "I drove by earlier this morning, I saw a familiar blue Camaro.. Do you want to tell me about that?" He smiles when he sees Elena's skin begin to bloom red. "You're blushing," he teases.

"Yes, Nik, Damon spent the night. I've seen him almost every day this past week. I like him, a lot," Elena admits, her eyes meeting his.

Impressed and happy that she's coming out of her shell a little, Nik laces their fingers together as they continue down the sidewalk. "Dairy Queen is in the next block. How about an ice cream cone? My treat."

"You've got yourself a date," Elena laughs, giving his hand a squeeze before letting go. As they continue to their destination, Elena's mind drifts to Damon. She can't help but smile when she thinks about how _they_ moved together over and over again, all night long.

* * *

Having stared at his computer for the last hour and a half and not being able to think of anything but Slater, Damon decides to call it quits for the day. It is his day off after all. After powering it down, he takes a breath, finishes what's left in his coffee cup and then locks up his desk. Just as he's standing up, Liz appears in his doorway.

"I know you're frustrated, Damon. Quite frankly I am too but we have no idea if his murder is related to your investigation. There's literally nothing we can do."

"I know, Liz, but I just can't shake the feeling that one plus one equals two."

"I tend to agree with you but until there's something concrete, we can't rush to judgement. Brady will keep us informed," she adds, brushing a strand of hair off of her forehead. "Why don't you come for supper, bring Elena if you'd like. I already asked Caroline. And just so you know, your dad is at the zoo today," she adds, raising an eyebrow.

"Are you suggesting that maybe I should make a trip to the zoo?" he laughs, giving her a wink.

"That's exactly what I had in mind."

Shaking his head, he joins her at the door, pulling it closed behind him. Once Liz is in her car, he waves as she drives away. As he walks over to his own, he pulls out his phone. Feeling guilty about leaving her so abruptly after such a fabulous night, he gives her a call. After making arrangements to meet her at his house, he gets in his car and drives home.

The first thing he does after walking into his place is to strip out of his clothes and hop into the shower. Pressing his palms against the shower wall, he lets the steaming hot water beat down on him. Picking up his shower gel, he washes his body and his hair before turning the water off. When he's done, he cinches a towel around his waist and then steps in front of the mirror. He's got a couple days worth of stubble but he's not in the mood to shave so he says the hell with it. He combs his hair and then leaves the bathroom. He finds some clothes then drops the towel and gets dressed.

Just as he's about to go downstairs, he hears the doorbell. A smile forms on his face so he hurries down the steps, practically leaping to the door. Turning the knob, he opens it, his smile widening even more when he sees her. Without wasting a second, he pulls her into his arms and kisses her with so much intensity that it feels like his insides are scorching. No other woman has made him feel this way.

"Wow," she breathes when he lets go.

"It's early yet. I thought we could go to one of my favorite places unless you want to stay here?"

"No, I'd love to go to one of your favorite places."

"Great," he squeals, taking her lips once more before slipping his shoes on. Once he has his wallet, keys and his phone, he takes her hand and leads her out to his car. Tossing her the keys, he tells her to unlock it while he goes back to lock up the house. As soon as Damon gets in the car, he slips on his aviator sunglasses and then backs out of the driveway and onto the road. Taking the Colorado Boulevard exit, he drives south till he sees the zoo exit. When she sees the sign she knows exactly where he's going.

"You like the zoo?"

"I don't remember if I told you or not but I worked there all through high school."

"You did tell me that. Didn't you mention that your dad is the curator?" she asks as Damon pulls into a parking spot. He skirts the hood, opens her door then offers his hand. With her hand firmly in his, he smiles at her as they walk to the ticket counter. Damon shows his pass but pays for Elena's fee. Before they start to view the exhibits, he leads her into the zoo offices to find his father.

Damon raps on the door when they reach it. As soon as they hear a "come in," Damon turns the knob, holding the door open for Elena. Matt looks up from his desk, a smile forming immediately when he sees his son. He stands up to greet them.

"Dad, this is Elena Gilbert. Elena, this is my dad, Matt Salvatore."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Salvatore."

"And it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Gilbert," he says, giving her a wink. "I like this one, Damon."

"I kind of like her too, dad," Damon laughs, giving her hand a squeeze.

"Liz told me that she invited you for supper?"

"She did, I just hadn't gotten around to asking yet. Thanks dad," Damon retorts, rolling his eyes playfully. "Would you like to have supper with me at my mom and dad's house?"

"I would love to join you, Damon." Stepping onto her tip toes to press a quick kiss to his lips.

"Why don't you two go see some of the animals? I'll see you at home later then son," Matt says, feeling absolutely giddy to see Damon practically beaming.

Unable to keep his hands off of her, Damon links their fingers again and then the two of them go back outside and begin to walk the paths around the zoo. They take their time watching the seal and sea lion shows. Even though Damon's thoughts frequently drift to Slater, he tries to push it out of his mind for now. Yet whenever he thinks of him, he can't brush off the gnawing feeling that somehow his murder is connected to this case. When Elena asks if something is bothering him, he brushes her off.

They spend a good amount of time at the gorilla enclosure. The large male is sitting aloof amongst the tall grasses, chewing on a large stalk of some type of plant. From there they look at the Chimps and the Orangutans, and an assortment of monkey species. Once they finish with the primates, they go to see the elephants, the rhinoceros and the giraffes. Because Elena loves cats, they walk hand in hand to the big cat area. He notices how enthralled she is by the tiger as it paces back and forth along it's rocky paddock.

When one of the zoo workers throws it a hunk of meat, he's on it in seconds. Once they finish, Damon takes her back to the caretakers area to show her what his job was while he worked here and to introduce her to Bonnie and Enzo. By the end of the afternoon they're both tired but they finish their trek before saying goodbye.

Once they're in his car, he leans over to capture her lips in a sizzling kiss. When he pulls back, he winks at her then slips the car into gear. He pulls onto the highway to drive towards his dad's ranch where they spend their weekends.

* * *

When he pulls into the driveway at his dad's ranch, Damon chuckles when he sees Caroline's mustang. "Care is here," Damon mentions, sharing a quick smile with Elena.

"I recognized her car too. What year is it anyway?"

"It's a 1966 'High Country Special' limited edition Mustang. Only 333 of these were sold in that year which makes it quite valuable as you can imagine," he starts to say as he brings his car to a stop. "A limited number of states were provided with this particular model. The High Country Special was introduced to boost sales in low markets, particularly Colorado. It has a decorative badge and was limited to just three color choices. As you can see, Caroline has the Columbine Blue."

"It must have cost a fortune?" Elena adds, stepping out of the car.

"Her dad bought it for her as a graduation present. He was absent for most of her life and saw it as a means to worm his way back in," Damon adds, a disgruntled look on his face.

"You don't like him?"

"Yeah, it's pretty obvious? He's not a nice man." Taking her hand, they walk to the front door. Before Damon can even put his hand on the knob, it flies open to reveal a bubbly Caroline. Grabbing Elena's hand, she pulls her into the house. Shaking his head, Damon follows along. As soon as he reaches the living room, he's a little surprised to see Nik here too.

"What are you doing here?" Elena asks, her smile widening even further when she sees Caroline drop a quick kiss to his lips

"Caroline invited me," he replies. Standing up, he offers Damon his hand, "Hello Damon."

"Hello, it's nice to see you again," Damon adds, giving his hand a shake. His eyes drift to Elena but she and Caroline are chattering with their heads together.

He wants to show her around the property but before he can ask her, Caroline takes her by the hand. "I want to show Elena my collection." Damon watches as they trot up the staircase. He feels a little uncomfortable around Nik so he excuses himself to go to look for his dad. Stepping onto the patio, he finds him. He breathes in the mouth watering aroma of grilled steak.

"Hi dad."

Turning around, Matt looks over his son's shoulders, a downtrodden look forming on his face. "Where's your Elena?"

"She's not my Elena but Caroline hijacked her," he laughs, stealing a swallow from his dad's beer bottle. Looking around, he sees that the picnic table is set but none of the food has been brought out yet. "Does Liz need some help?"

"I've got the corn on the cob here but she hinted at asking you to make your famous potato salad dressing."

Shaking his head, Damon takes one more swallow then goes back into the house to do just that. He feels a little guilty when he sees Nik sitting by himself. He realizes that he's not being a very good host. "My dad is on the patio if you want to go out. I'm just going to help Liz in the kitchen for a few minutes and then I'll be out too."

"Sounds good," Nik agrees, then follows Damon to the sliding doors. He watches as Nik approaches his father. When his dad gives Nik a bottle of beer, Damon goes in search of Liz.

"Dad said you needed some sauce?"

"The mayo is in the fridge. I don't know what your secret is but your potato salad dressing is to die for," she chuckles, handing him a bowl and a spatula.

"It's a state secret. I cannot tell you," he laughs, gathering the mayo, apple cider vinegar, milk and the spices he needs. Once he has it mixed up, he helps her to peel the cooked potatoes and chop them up. By the time they're done and ready to take the food outside, Elena and Caroline join them in the kitchen.

"Hey," Damon greets her a lopsided grin on his face.

"Caroline was just showing me her makeup collection. It's something."

"It is indeed. She has a whole room set aside."

"I saw."

"Liz, this is Elena Gilbert," Damon offers, introducing the women.

"Hello Elena, I'm Caroline's mom. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Damon and Caroline talk about you all the time. I'm happy to finally meet you."

"I don't know about you but I'm hungry," Damon adds, rubbing his hand over his belly.

"Why don't you two make yourselves useful," Liz interrupts, handing Elena the bowl of potato salad and Caroline the tray of condiments. They all walk outside with Liz sliding the patio door closed. Once they're all seated at the picnic table and the steaks passed around they start to eat. Knowing what Elena did to Damon, Liz tries to be nice but is worried about him. She's raised him since he was a young teenager and loves him like a son.

"Thank you for inviting Nik and me for supper. The food is simply delicious," Elena remarks, picking up her ear of corn to gnaw at it.

"You're very welcome, Elena. I hope you won't make yourself scarce," Matt adds, giving Damon a wink.

Damon smiles albeit a little uncomfortably. He knows his dad means well and that he, himself is crazy about her but he doesn't want her to feel like she's being pressured either. Andie was the last woman that Damon brought home to meet the folks and they all know how well that worked out. Although his memories of her have been jaded with the knowledge that she cheated, they were good for awhile but he will admit to himself that never once did the idea of forever with her pop into his mind. Everything with Elena is fresh and wonderful despite their introduction to each other. He doesn't want to rush things with her.

"Elena, sometime you should come over and I'll give you a makeover. You could either come out here or you can come to my store?"

"Sure, that sounds fun," Elena agrees, rolling her eyes just slightly when she sees Damon. Shaking his head, they finish eating. After taking the time to help put the food away and wash the dishes, Damon goes to find Elena. She's outside with Nik, Caroline and his dad enjoying a drink while they sit around the fire pit. Tired after an emotionally trying day, he steps behind Elena and whispers in her ear if she's ready to go. Nodding, she takes one more swallow and then stands up, taking the hand he offers.

Once they say goodbye to the others, Damon walks over to his father. "I'm tired, dad. We're going to go."

"Alright son, I'll walk you out," Matt adds, following them out to Damon's car. He pulls open the passenger door for Elena, letting her slip inside. Walking around to the driver's side, he gives Damon a hug and tells him that they should have lunch one day next week. Agreeing, Damon nods, takes his place behind the wheel. As soon as he starts the engine, he back out, waves to his father and then drives off. Matt watches till the headlights disappear into the distance.

* * *

As soon as they step into Damon's house, he tosses his car keys on the kitchen counter. Truly tired after an emotionally exhausting day, all he wants is to sleep for the next ten to twelve hours with Elena wrapped securely in his arms. Turning around, he immediately pulls her into his arms and drops his mouth, taking hers in a torrid kiss. After pulling apart, he drops a peck to the tip of her nose, takes her hand and silently leads her into his bedroom. With gentle hands, he helps her to undress then discards his own. Unable to stop himself from kissing her again, he then pulls back the covers, letting her crawl in. Damon takes the time to use the bathroom and then gets in bed too, wasting no time in rolling her beneath him.

* * *

 _Damon is smitten..._

 _Thank you so much Eva. I love you dearly._

 _You are all priceless too. Thank you so much for your incredible support._

 _Chapter title: 'We've Only Just Begun' by The Carpenters._

 _I did write a one-shot companion to "I Can't Escape Myself". It is called "Born to Be My Baby" if you are interested in it._

 _I can hardly wait to share "Tomorrow" and "This Isn't What We Meant". We also have another period piece to share._

 _I hope you all have a phenomenal weekend._


	13. Something There

Feeling something brushing across her face, Elena slowly opens her eyes. The open window is blowing her hair across her face, tickling her nose. Raising her hands above her head, she stretches her limbs. While laying on her back, she takes the opportunity to look around his room. One of the first things she notices is the picture that's sitting on his bedside stand. She recognizes Damon's father and little Damon himself. He looks to be about five. Matt's arm is around the woman's shoulders. Her hand is laid on the older boy's shoulder while Matt's is protectively around Damon, holding him close to his side. As her eyes drift, she sees a picture of Damon and the other boy, obviously his deceased brother dressed in baseball uniforms, huge smiles on both of their faces. Still there's another one with the woman holding an infant, the older boy's eyes focused on the baby in her arms. His face is alight, the baby's hand fisting around the boy's finger. When she feels her eyes begin to moisten, she looks around a little more, on top of his dresser is a model of an airplane and a frame holding some sort of commendation or something.

As melancholy starts to overwhelm her, she shifts her position so her front is to his back, drapes her arm around his middle and then closes her eyes. The next time she wakes up, it's to Damon smiling at her. The first thing he does is take her lips in a breathtaking kiss. Before she can blink he has her sprawled out. Having slept in the nude, there's no need to shed any clothes. When the cool rush of air from his ceiling fan hits her breasts, her nipples harden enticing him even more. Lowering himself over her, Elena gasps sharply when he sucks her nipple into his mouth. Dropping her eyes, she meets his, she gasps at the way their blue hue darkens and grows carnal with desire. That eroticism alone is nearly her undoing. The sight of her breast disappearing inside the heat of his mouth is so intensely erotic that she can feel her lower belly begin to burn and explode with desire. Threading their fingers together, he raises them above her head while his mouth moves to her other breast.

He lifts his head slowly, pausing his sweet brand of torture for a millisecond before his mouth begins to blaze a fiery trail over the valley of her sensitized breasts, across her chest and up her neck. Paying special attention to that spot just behind her ear, Elena moans when she feels his heated breath against her skin.

"I want to hear you scream my name." His voice is so husky that if she'd been standing, her knees would've buckled. Using his tongue, he traces the curve of her ear, brushes a wispy kiss to each side of her mouth, finally planting his against hers in a kiss that charbroils her insides.

"That feels so good," she breathes, her body wanting everything that he has to offer. His head moves to her other shoulder and once more, when his warm breath hits her ear he pulls the lobe into his mouth, sucking hard. With their hands still joined, he lets go and moves his mouth to hers. She struggles, wanting to free her hands so she can run them up and down his finely sculpted back. Elena bites onto his lower lip causing him to hiss at the sting. Without letting go, he gives her a wink then secures her hands with one of his. Using his now free one, he tangles it in her hair. Pulling her head back, he lays claim to her mouth again, his lips both demanding and possessive. With her hands still restrained, she arches her back pressing her breasts against his bare chest. The delicious slide of her nipples against his warm skin nearly has her mad with pleasure. After letting go of her lips, he stares at her with lust blown pupils. Unable to get enough, Damon drops his mouth, stealing yet another smoldering kiss before slithering down her body, finally landing where she wants him the most. Settling himself between her legs, he uses his tongue to trace the outline of her lady parts making her back bow off of the mattress, the feeling of his mouth on her body is exquisite beyond anything she could ever imagine.

When his tongue dips between her now moisture deluged folds, a keening sound escapes her mouth and echoes throughout the room. Using it to the best of his ability, he probes everywhere but where she desperately wants. With her fingers clutching the sheets so tightly that her nailbeds are white, he finally pulls her clit between his teeth, nipping and suckling till her orgasm hits her with the force of a ten kiloton blast, Damon's name leaving her lips breathily.

Bleary-eyed with pleasure, she raises her head slightly when he pauses in his ministrations. When their eyes meet, his smoldering gaze causes chill bumps to erupt all over her body. Raising her hand, she cups the back of his neck and pulls his lips to hers. While their mouths are engaged, she runs her hands down his back and onto the curve of his ass. Feeling his tip brush against her now heated core, she shifts her hips to invite him in. Taking the hint, Damon pulls back slightly, takes himself in hand and positions himself at her entrance. With his hands on her hips, he pushes inside slowly, inch by delicious inch. Before she can even take a breath he pulls out and moves back in slowly. He feels so damn good, more so than she can even begin to put into words.

Damon pulls his hips back before plunging forward again making Elena cry out in ecstasy. Dropping his elbows to either side of her head, he uses them for leverage as he continues his delicious brand of torture. She wraps her legs around his waist to pull him in even deeper, reveling in the exquisiteness of being joined with him like this. Damon picks up the pace, pushing them both closer to release. Seeing his lips parted and his eyes focused only on her, she can feel him getting close when he starts to plunge forward even harder inside of her. When his hand slips between their bodies, he pats her clit and that's all it takes for Elena to unravel, pleasure pounding through her like gale force winds in a cat five hurricane. Her arms tighten around Damon to keep herself from drifting into the tidal wave. Lost in unrivaled ecstasy, she faintly hears his voice as he comes with a loud cry of _"Elena_."

Completely spent, he collapses onto her body. Elena loves the feel of his weight pressing her into the mattress. When his breathing begin to even out, he lifts himself off of her. With her body in a complete state of bliss, she links their fingers together, wanting to keep the connection intact for a little longer. Feeling her eyes grow heavy, she snuggles into his side, the last thing she feels is the wispiest of his kisses on her forehead before she drifts off to sleep.

* * *

Not wanting to let go, Damon holds her close until she's sound asleep again. Ever so stealthily, he frees his arms then sits up at the bedside. Scrubbing his hands over his face, he rubs the sleep out of his eyes. Standing up carefully, he ambles over to the dresser. After putting on a clean pair of boxer briefs and a tee shirt, he picks up his robe from the foot of the bed and slips it on before tiptoeing out of the room, pulling the door shut behind him. Trotting down the steps, he goes to the kitchen first to start a pot of coffee. Facing the kitchen window, he smiles when he feels his cat brush against the backs of his legs. Opening the cupboard, he drops a few cat treats into his palm and then stoops, dropping them on the floor. While Pinocchio eats them up, Damon strokes his feline. He's had him for about ten years now and Damon hopes that many more are to come.

With the coffee brewing, he walks outside in his bare feet to pick up the newspaper. Pausing for a moment to unfold it, he has to jump back when his neighbor's son, Timmy comes barreling down the sidewalk on his rollerblades.

"Hi Damon," Timmy squeals, slowing to a stop.

"Hey buddy. You're getting pretty good with those," Damon adds, pointing to his feet.

"You should skate with me sometimes. My mom says that you know how to."

"I do know how to roller blade but I haven't done it in a long time. I'd probably end up flat on my a...," he starts to say, looking up when he hears his front door. Looking as beautiful as he's ever seen her, Damon lights up when she approaches them.

"Who's your little buddy?" she asks, saying, "I'm Elena."

"I'm Timmy. I live right there," he explains, pointing to the next house over. When Elena looks up, she sees a man step outside. Waving, he walks over to join them.

"Good morning, Damon"

"Tyler, this is my friend, Elena," he says, taking her hand in his. "Elena, this is Tyler Lockwood."

"It's good to meet you, Elena. I hate to be rude but Timmy and I have to get going. I promised my wife that we'd go to the mall to see a movie today," he says, urging Timmy to turn around. After giving Damon a nod, the two of them walk away and disappear inside their house.

"Tyler and Caroline dated all through high school. Quite obviously it didn't work out but they're still friends. He met his wife Liv right after they broke up and married her within six months," Damon explains, leading Elena back inside and into the kitchen. Once she sits down, he pours her a cup of coffee and starts to make them some scrambled eggs. Almost as soon as Damon pours them a refill and sits down to eat, his phone rings.

"Good morning, Liz."

 _"I know it's our day off, Damon, but Mack just called. He wants to have another video conference. Can you meet me at the office in an hour?"_

"I'll be there, Liz." Hanging up the phone, he takes Elena's hand and gently presses a kiss to the base of her thumb. "That was Liz. She wants me to meet her at the office. You're welcome to stay here. When I'm done, we could go to a movie or something?"

"As enticing as that sounds, I really want to do a little writing. I think my muse is finally coming back to life. "Intrepid NTSB inspector will stop at nothing in his quest to find the truth."

"Are you saying that I'm your inspiration?" Damon laughs.

"I am indeed. Why don't you call me later?" she adds. Getting up, she drops a kiss to his forehead before running upstairs to grab her handbag. Hurrying down the steps, she walks into his awaiting arms. Taking her mouth in a scorching kiss, their lips mold and slide together as if made for one another. Taking her hand, he walks her outside. He pulls open the door, holding it while she slides in and buckles her seat belt. After he pushes it closed, she rolls down her window and presses her index finger to her lips. Shaking his head, he leans over, capturing her mouth once more before stepping back and watching as she puts her car in reverse, pulls onto the road and disappears when she makes a right turn at the end of the block.

* * *

After visiting with the security guard for a few minutes, Damon walks directly to Liz's. He's a little surprised to find his dad since this is official business.

"Wipe that look off of your face, Damon. As soon as Mack calls, I'll step out of the office."

"I didn't mean to imply anything, dad, it's just that you're never here."

"That's true but Liz and I have some plans for this afternoon."

"Do you now?" Damon teases, raising an eyebrow teasingly. "And what do these big plans imply?"

"That, son, is for me to know and for you to dot, dot, dot," he adds, using his hand to make the dots in the air. At that, the two Salvatore men start chuckling. When Liz steps back into her office with coffee, she hands one to each of them but looks at them rather dubiously.

"It's nothing, Liz. I was just telling Damon that we had plans for this afternoon."

"Sorry, Damon, it's a state secret," Liz admits, sitting down behind her desk. After Matt takes a sip, he turns to Damon.

"It was nice meeting your Elena yesterday Damon. She seems very nice."

"First of all, dad, she's not my Elena and yes, she is very nice. I like her a lot. I guess that's something considering how we met," Damon muses not realizing that he opened up a can of worms.

"Considering how you met?"

"It's nothing dad, we just got off on the wrong foot. It was a misunderstanding of sorts."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Not really," Damon says, taking a swallow of his own coffee. Before Matt can ask another question, the phone rings. Knowing that it's likely Mack, Matt leaves, telling them he'll be in the waiting room.

"Hello, Mack," Damon and Liz say simultaneously.

"Um, hi. I'm really at a loss here. There's really no other way to say this but than to just say it. I cannot find the recordings. There is no reason on earth for Slater or anyone else to remove those recordings from the buildings. I talked to the lead detective, he assured me that they weren't at Slater's home or even in his office. I wasn't allowed to go into his office till the police went through it. But I can say that they know he was in a bar the night before. The place was a regular haunt of his so the bartender knew him. With the recordings nowhere to be found, are you sure that you don't have them in your possession, Damon? Could you have misplaced them?"

"No! I assure you that when I concluded this investigation, all of the evidence was sent to DC. And as you know, the black boxes went directly to Washington. The only time I heard them is when I flew to headquarters myself."

"You won't like hearing this but the lead detective wants to speak with you on Monday."

"You cannot be serious? I'm only connected to this crime if the tapes play a part," Damon snaps, raking his hand through his hair in frustration.

"Damon, I told them about the missing tapes and that you were the one requesting them. They probably just want to know why. From what I've been told by Detective Saltzman, they haven't ascertained motive yet. I can't imagine that those tapes have anything to do with it but I'm not the police."

Shaking his head back and forth, Damon crumples his coffee cup and launches it into the wastebasket. Without saying another word, he walks out of the office, slamming her door shut behind him. Since he doesn't want to receive the third degree from his dad, he escapes out of the back door, making sure to lock it behind him. Jumping into his car, he revs the engine and pull out of the parking lot to wait for a break in traffic to turn onto the road. When there's finally a gape, he happens to notice his dad and Liz in his rearview mirror just before pulling onto the road and driving away.

* * *

Although he wants nothing more than to bury himself inside Elena all over again, he doesn't want to interrupt her writing. Since he left the office in a bit of huff, Damon pulls into a McDonald's to get something to eat. Picking up his phone he calls Liz to apologize. As expected she tells him that there's no need. After thanking her, he explains that he's just going to go home rather than accept her invite for him to join her and his dad for pizza.

Damon drives around most of the afternoon, even stopping at Park Meadows for awhile to kill some time. While at the mall, he buys himself a new pair of jeans and a new bottle of cologne, hoping that Elena will like it. Once he has everything in the car, he drives home but his mood plummets when he sees Caroline and Bill sitting on his front steps. Pulling into the driveway, he drops his forehead against the steering wheel and wonders why he can't have just a few moments of peace and quiet. Rather than put off the inevitable, he climbs out of the car and after pulling his package out of the backseat, he lumbers over to the door.

"Where have you been?" Caroline asks, her hands on her hips.

"I was out."

"Out where?"

"I'm not allowed to have a private life?"

"Did you have a fight with Elena? You're sure in a pissy mood," she persists.

"No, I didn't fight with Elena but I'm tired and all I want to do is put my feet up and enjoy a beer.

"You can do that, we all can."

Brushing it off for now, he glances at Bill before adding, "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"We're going to have dinner together. Dad, will you get the sack out of the car?" she asks, then follows Damon in the house as soon as he unlocks the door. Stepping aside, he lets her barrel her way through the front door.

"If you insist on staying, I need to make some coffee. I'm tired," Damon insists, covering his mouth when a yawn threatens to escape. Following Damon to the kitchen, Bill sits down at the table while Caroline lifts some cups out of the cupboard. She stares at him for a moment and then points to the chair. Knowing it's pointless to argue, he takes a seat opposite of Bill. As soon as the coffee is done percolating, she pours them each a cup and then sits down herself. Reaching for the sugar, she drops a little in hers, stirs it up and then takes a long swallow.

"What's troubling you, Damon? You were on cloud nine yesterday now today you're just in a dither."

"It's been a long day, Caroline." Glancing over at Bill he continues, "A former colleague of mine, Slater Barnes, was murdered in Washington DC. He was a good friend."

"I'm sorry Damon," she says, immediately standing up, she wraps her arms around his neck and hugs him tightly. When she pulls back he nods and mouths thanks to her.

"Slater? Do you think it could have anything to do with you reopening the investigation into Flight 1042?"

"I really don't know Bill. What little I know about it, it looks more like a robbery."

"It's just that the timing seems suspicious, don't you agree?" Bill offers, taking another swallow from his cup.

"It strikes me as more than coincidental too but I'm not the police. I don't know what evidence they do or don't have." Although he doesn't really trust Bill, he can admit to himself that he really seems to be making an effort for Caroline's sake. Since Bill has done nothing recently to raise Damon's ire, he'll play along till the man shows his spots again. After Damon yawns widely again, Caroline smiles, gets up and puts their dirty cups in the sink.

"Dad, he's tired. He probably didn't get much sleep last night," Caroline adds, winking at Damon. "We need to go so he can take a nap."

Shaking his head, Damon follows them outside, waving good bye before turning around and walking back into his house. Reaching into the refrigerator, he grabs a bottle of water and a couple of aspirin then walks into the living room. Picking up the throw, he plops down on the couch and puts his feet up. After taking a long pull from his water bottle, he covers himself up, texts Elena that he has a headache then rolls onto his side, closes his eyes, letting sleep finally pull him under.

* * *

Having written a lot already, Elena glances up at the clock. It's only a little after four so she decides to take a break. Picking up her keys and handbag, she goes outside, hops in her car and drives the relatively short distance to the cemetery. Getting out of her car, she walks the well worn path to monument that marks her dad and brother's final resting places. They're not together but not far apart either. Stopping first at Jeremy's, she kneels on the ground and runs her fingers along the smooth face of the granite. His name is etched in the finest scroll calligraphic script. _Jeremy Edward Gilbert_ , she says softly, adding, _Beloved Son and Brother_. Swallowing thickly she tells him how much she misses him. Pressing her palm flat against the cold stone, she drops her eyes in an effort to regain her composure.

Once she does, she stands up and walks the short distance to visit her father. The black marble of his monument shimmers when the sun reflects off of it. His face, like Jeremy's is etched into the stone, the like uncanny, almost as if a photograph was burnished into the stone. ' _Grayson Edward Gilbert, Beloved Husband and Father_. Above his name an airplane is embossed into the stone. Smiling, Elena touches the grooves of the plane's wings. She knows her dad would love it if he were here to see it too. After spending a few quiet moments with him, she stands up and walks out. After jumping into her car, she decides to stop at her mom's place. She realizes that she should've asked her if she wanted to come with. Their wedding anniversary is next week and Elena has not missed her mother's melancholy of late. Deciding that she'll go right back there if her mom wants to go, she pulls into the driveway and directly into the house.

Finding her in the living room watching a talk show, Elena sits down on the couch. "Hi mom."

"Elena, why are you here?"

"Do I need a reason to stop by to see my own mother?" she laughs, curious about her mom's attitude.

"I'm sorry, dear. It's just that our anniversary is coming up. I miss your dad so much," she admits, pulling a tissue out of her pocket to dab her eyes.

"Mom, I love you so much."

"I know you do sweetheart. I love you too."

"I just came from the cemetery. I'd be glad to take you over there if you want to go see them?"

"Oh Elena, I didn't hear you come in. Would you like a cup of tea too?" Lexi asks, handing Miranda a mug. I caught the tail end of your question. Nik and I took your mom to the cemetery earlier today."

Seeing the surprised look on her daughter's face, Miranda interrupts, "Elena, I know we should've asked you to go too but I know you like to go there by yourself so you can talk to them in private. So please don't be upset."

Not really knowing what to say, Elena's eyes dart from her mom to Lexi and then back. "Well, I guess I'll go home then. I'll talk to you tomorrow, mom," she says. Standing up, she presses a kiss to her mom's cheek then walks through the front door and out of the house without bothering to say goodbye to the other woman. Squeezing the steering wheel tightly, she doesn't really know why Lexi irritated her so much today. The woman has taken good care of her mother but yet there are times when Lexi usurps her place with her mom. Although Elena herself is not close to the woman, her mother relies on her heavily. Sometimes she things that maybe Lexi is a little too close. Since there's nothing she can do about it now, she tries to push it out of her mind but she's definitely going to ask Nik about it. When she sees the McDonalds, she turns into the drive through, ordering an ice cream cone then drives home to take a nice hot bubble bath and relax.

* * *

As tired as he is, he can't seem to settle down. Somehow in the space of a very short time, she's wormed her way into his heart. His bed feels lonely without her. After staring at the ceiling for he doesn't know how long, he glances over to see what time it is. Debating whether or not he should call her, he shifts onto his side. Reaching for his clock, he sees that it's not late at all, it's only a little after ten. But with all of their extracurricular activities over the last twenty four hours, Damon figures she's probably tired too. Deciding against it, he turns off the lamp and settles down, pulling the covers over his body. Just as he's about to drift off to sleep, his phone startles him awake. Hoping that it's her, he flails around trying to reach it.

"Elena, hi."

 _"I just wanted to say goodnight."_

"I'm glad you called. This might sound cheesy but I miss not having you in my bed."

 _"I miss being in your bed," she replies softly._

Hearing her yawn, Damon teases, "You should settle in for a nice winter's nap."

 _"Why Mr. Salvatore, if I'm going to settle in for a nice winter's nap, you're going to be right here beside me," she adds, a lascivious lilt to her voice._

"You keep talking like that honey, I'm going to get in my car and make your every fantasy come true."

 _"Promise?" she retorts._

"Cross my heart," he says, his own voice husky. Although he can feel his manhood jerk a little, Damon picks at the quilt threads to distract himself.

 _"I would love to keep talking with you, Damon, but I'm tired. Will I see you tomorrow?"_

"What did you have in mind?"

 _"How about I meet you at Park Meadows after you get off work. There's a nice little bar there."_

"You have yourself a date. Goodnight, Elena."

 _"Goodnight, Damon," she whispers then hangs up the phone._

Staring at it for a few seconds, Damon clicks it off. After setting it down on the bedside table, he lays back down and closes his eyes. This time sleep comes easily as visions of Elena fill his mind and his heart.

* * *

 _The mystery intensifies..._

 _Thank you so much, Eva. I love you dearly._

 _Huge, huge thanks to all of you. I cannot express how truly grateful I am for all of you._

 _Chapter title: 'Something There' from Beauty and the Beast._

 _I did post the conclusion of "San Francisco" a few days ago._

 _Be safe and have a wonderful day and weekend. Thank you all again._


	14. Crossfire

Still locked in the throes of sleep, Damon buries his head under the pillow when he hears his phone ringing. Not wanting to wake up yet, he tries to ignore it. When the ringing continues incessantly, he finally raises up on one arm while reaching for the phone with the other. Clicking it on, he mumbles, "Hello."

 _"Damon, it's Liz. You need to get down here. There's a couple of cops here to speak with you."_

Now wide awake, he snaps, "The hell you say?"

 _"Don't bite my head off. I didn't invite them."_

"I know, Liz. I'm sorry again. I'll be there in a little while." Frustrated, he drops back onto the mattress. After staring at the ceiling for several minutes to tame the beast as it were, he drags himself out of bed and into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

As soon as he gets to the office, he goes directly to the conference room after Liz's secretary tell him that's where the men are waiting. Pausing at the door, he takes a deep breath, again feeling a little anger beginning to rear it's ugly head. He hasn't done anything wrong and yet it feels like he's going to be interrogated. Since he doesn't know for sure what they want, he drops his hand to the knob and twists, stepping inside.

"Gentleman," Damon states, his voice exuding the confidence that he really doesn't feel but he's not about to let them see that's he's a bit nervous. He almost has to laugh at the irony of it all. Usually he's the one doing the interrogating if any needs to be done. Walking over to the coffee pot, he pours himself one and then joins the men at the table. "How can I help you?"

"Please relax, Mr. Salvatore, you're not a suspect. I'm Detective Parker and this is Detective Jonas Martin. We're working on behalf of Detective Saltzman of the Washington DC police force. The reason we're here is to try to piece together Mr. Slater's last hours. We know he called you. Can you elaborate?"

"Not really. I've reopened an old case. I've been trying to obtain some of the black box recordings from the flight but despite his promises to do so, I have never received them."

"So you were in contact with him to get these recordings?"

"Yes, sir. Slater used to work here in Denver as I'm sure you're well aware. Anyway, the night he died, I suppose it was that night..., he called me but the only thing he said was, "Damon, the tapes," and then the line went dead. I don't know anything more than that."

"Do you think his murder could be related to these tapes?"

"I have no way of knowing. I mean, the timing seems suspicious to me but I can't say with any certainty that they're related to his murder or not."

Damon doesn't miss how the man, Detective Parker, is raking his eyes over him. Feeling uncomfortable, Damon takes a long swallow of his coffee. After setting the cup down, he clasps his hands together on the table top. Looking at the man, he takes a swallow of his own coffee and then peruses Damon again before asking, "Can you tell us which case it was and what made you decide to reopen it?"

"I was approached by an interested party, a family member of one of the victim's, to take a fresh look at the evidence. This person made an impact on me. That said, I also told her in no uncertain terms that I would in no way compromise my reputation and that I would only change the causative factors if I found evidence to do so. My integrity is very important to me."

"What kind of security does the NTSB have that these tapes could turn up missing? Fenton Hardy, he goes by Mack, told us about the missing tapes. What could have happened to them?"

"I have no idea where they are other than the fact that I never got them. I don't appreciate you inferring that we are lax in our security measures. We have top security working for us, top men," Damon stresses, getting more than a bit frustrated with their line of questioning. When the other man starts to speak, they're interrupted by Liz as she steps into the conference room to join them.

"Ms. Forbes, we're about done with Mr. Salvatore but I want to stress that if the missing tapes somehow end up here, you need to inform us," Detective Martin says firmly. "I don't know if they're at all significant to this investigation but on the small chance that they could be, we need to know."

"If and that's a big if, I get the tapes, I intend to continue my investigation in Flight 1042," Damon says firmly, pressing his palms flat on the tape top hard enough to whiten his fingernails.

"That's the case you were waiting for the recordings on?"

"Yes," Damon admits, standing up to refill his coffee cup. Glancing at Liz, he takes another swallow. "Now gentlemen if that's all, I have work to do."

"Right now the working theory is that it was a random robbery gone bad. If those tapes happen to show up, I reiterate that you need to call us. I think they're not in any way related to this investigation but like you in your profession, I need to cover all my bases too," Detective Parker adds, staring directly at Damon.

Damon gives them a nod and then walks out of the room, wiping the sweat off his brow as he continues down the hall towards his own office.

* * *

Waking up, Elena raises her arms above her head and stretches her limbs. The gauzy curtains are dancing with the light breeze that's blowing through her open window. Just as she decides to be lazy and close them again, she smells the delicious aroma of what smells like cinnamon rolls and Amaretto flavored coffee. Sitting upright, she startles when the bedroom door opens. When Nik pokes his head through the door, she relaxes immediately but pulls her doll quilt up over chest so he isn't able to see her bosom since her nightgown is rather sheer.

"You scared me," she blurts out, playfully aiming her middle finger at him.

Pretending to be scandalized, Nik drops his mouth open, "Now tell me Elena, what kind of a thief brings you breakfast in bed?" Walking over to the bed, he sets the tray over her lap and then sits down beside her. "Before I forget, Miranda mentioned that you stopped by yesterday and that you left a little abruptly. She said you were kind of testy. Do you want to talk about it?"

"Of course she had to tell you," Elena adds, rolling her eyes. Picking up her fork, she takes a bite of her pastry and follows it with a swallow of coffee.

"Elena?"

"I was just surprised when Lexi admitted that you had all been to the cemetery. I didn't like her tone but that's neither here nor there. I don't want to talk about it."

"You've never had issues with Lexi before have you? I mean, Miranda cares for her a great deal," Nik points out, taking a swallow himself.

"I don't want to fight with you. I'm not going to talk about it anymore," Elena says firmly before pouring some creamer into her own coffee. After stirring it up, she takes a long swallow. Holding it between her hands, she smiles teasingly and asks about Caroline.

"Actually Elena, I haven't seen her since last Saturday. She was with her dad yesterday. But you know what.. the four of us should go out for dinner. What do you say?"

"I'll ask Damon about it. Caroline is a trip so I'm sure it'll be entertaining," Elena laughs, taking another swallow from her mug. Keeping the quilt close to her chest, she laughs when she sees Nik blush a bit. "So you two," she adds, smirking at him.

"Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones dear little Elena," he adds, making her own cheeks bloom red. Seeing that his snarky comment got the desired result, he wraps his arm around her shoulders and gives her a squeeze. "Listen, you know you can talk to me about anything and that includes sex. But as much as I'd love to stay and gloat about making you blush, I really have to get to the office. I'm meeting a client in about a half hour." Standing up, he drops a kiss to her hair and then walks towards the door.

"Nik," she says, stopping him in his tracks. Pausing at the door, he turns around to listen to what she has to say. "I'll talk to Damon and then get back to you."

"Sounds good, bye Elena."

"Bye and thanks for breakfast."

"You're welcome and I'll lock the front door since you're scared of creepers," he adds with a wink before disappearing through the door.

* * *

Edgy and irritated after a frustrating day, Damon drops his head into his hands. Threading his fingers into his hair, he closes his eyes and just tries to clear his mind for a little while. Without the black box recordings, he has no way to go forward with Elena's case. Not only that but the police don't seem to believe that there's anything to link the missing tapes with the murder. Just as well, Damon thinks. He'd hate to think he was responsible if asking for them is what got Slater killed. But what if they are related? What could be on those tapes that someone would kill for them? The very thought of that sets Damon's heart racing. He also didn't like how dismissive Detectives' Martin and Parker were. Leaning back, he drops his head back and looks at the ceiling. Deciding to call it quits for the day when he sees that it's nearly four thirty anyway, he sits upright, puts his things in order and then shoves them into his desk. Blowing out a breath of air, he stands up and stretches his limbs a bit.

Hearing his phone ring, he breaks a rare smile today and answers it. "Hello Elena."

 _"Hi Damon. Nik was here earlier.. he asked us to join him and Caroline for supper tonight. When I talked to her, she suggested Chipotle since we're meeting at Park Meadows anyway?"_

"That sounds nice and it's convenient since the restaurant is inside of the mall. I'm just about to leave the office. I'm going to go home to clean up a bit and then I'll be there."

 _"Sounds good. I'll see you in a little while then."_

"You will. Bye, Elena."

 _"Goodbye, Damon."_

Clicking off the phone, he locks his office door and heads for the exit. Pausing at Liz's door, he sees she's busy so he just nods at her through her window. Without waiting for an acknowledgement, he hurries outside. As soon as he's in the car, he guns the engine and takes off, hoping the traffic will be light so he can see her soon.

* * *

By the time he arrives at the restaurant, the other three are already there. Seeing Elena wave, he smiles and points them out to the hostess. Seeing that his party is seated, she steps aside so he can join them. Taking a seat beside Elena, he leans over and gives her a kiss. Since they have drinks already, Nik waves over the waitress. After ordering a Watermelon Margarita and some appetizers, they talk about the Rockies. Having had no idea that Elena liked baseball, he has to smile. Holding her hand under the table, Damon takes a sip of his drink and then stuffs a bite of nachos into his mouth.

Although he's doing a good job of hiding it, Elena can sense that Damon is a bit edgy tonight. She can see by the tight set of his brow and the way his shoulders are drawn. After their meals arrive, they eat and continue to visit. Damon is just beginning to relax when Caroline, being Caroline throws a damper on it when she asks him about the investigation.

"Caroline, I don't want to talk about that tonight," Damon whines, waving at the waitress to bring another round of drinks.

"My dad is trying to help him," Caroline says, ignoring Damon's request to drop it. "He's really been invaluable with his airplane expertise."

"Invaluable? Really Caroline?" Damon scoffs, thanking the waitress when she puts the drinks in front of them.

"I met Caroline's father Saturday after we left your dad's house, Damon. He seems like a stand up guy."

"You don't know him like I know him Nik so I would prefer not to get into it."

"Okay," Nik adds, his eyes drifting from Elena to Caroline before taking a long swallow from his Long Island Ice Tea.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you but I've had a rough day." Against his better judgement and aware that he should probably not reveal something, he elaborates further, "A colleague of mine, the one I told you about yesterday," he says, his eyes drifting to Caroline before continuing his train of thought, "was murdered in Washington DC and I had to be interviewed by a couple of detectives this morning."

"Why would they want to talk to you?" Nik asks, setting his glass down.

"Because he was the one that was supposed to send me the recordings from Captain Gilbert's flight. But the police don't believe there's any connection."

"Bullshit," Caroline retorts, having her own opinion on the matter.

"Surely there must be something you can do? If they sought you out for questioning, they must think they're somehow related?" Elena suggests, her eyes meeting his.

"I told you, Elena. They don't believe them to be related. They only asked to question me because his phone call was the last one he made."

"But Damon, you must make them listen to you. Are you sure there's nothing you can to do to convince them to consider that avenue? The timing is such that it seems more than just coincidence," Elena presses, her stomach churning with anticipation.

"Maybe it is more than coincidence but I'm not the one conducting the investigation," he retorts, his fingers tracing the pattern on the table cloth.

"There must be something you can do?" she adds, not willing to drop the topic despite Damon's increasing animosity.

"Do something, Elena? What would you have me do? Something like... maybe kidnapping them at gun point, holding them hostage all the while demanding that they listen to me?" Damon snaps, dropping his chin to his chest.

Recoiling, Elena feels the barb hit its mark. Not knowing what to say, she glances at Caroline and Nik and then backs her chair up.

"Damon?" Caroline blurts out, incredulous at his outburst.

"Caroline," he echoes, glaring at her. She's the one who opened this whole can of worms in the first place.

"I think I've had enough to drink. I'm going to go home," Elena says softly.

"Look Elena, I'm sorry, I didn't want to talk about this tonight."

"No, it's fine, I was being pushy. I know you're doing everything you can. But I'm tired." Even though she can appreciate his effort and that she has no real reason to be angry, she does feel the sting of his jab, acutely so. Standing up, she drops a quick kiss to his lips. After saying goodnight to him, she picks up her handbag and leaves the restaurant. Frustrated, Damon throws his napkin onto the table and then follows after her. Since Elena drove in with him, Nik quickly pays the bill. Taking Caroline's hand in his own, they quickly catch up but keep a short distance behind the two of them. As soon as she reaches Nik's car, she turns around to face Damon. "Goodnight, Damon."

"Elena, please?"

"Are you ready to go, Elena?" Nik asks, unlocking the car door. Pulling it open, Elena gets in. After Nik says goodnight to Caroline, he gets in the car and drives away, leaving Damon and Caroline behind.

"I need to go after her," Damon says, running over to his vehicle.

"Damon, no. Let her be tonight. She's hurt."

Stopping at his car, he lays his head on the roof for a few seconds before turning around to face her. "Why couldn't you leave it alone? I told you that I didn't want to talk about it and now everything is a mess."

"You're right. I should have shut up but I didn't think you'd burst a vessel either."

"I'm not going to fight with you too. I'm going home. Goodnight, Caroline," he says. Jumping into his car, he doesn't drive off till he sees that she's safely inside of her own car. Pulling onto the highway, he rolls down the window and lets the breeze tousle his hair. Needing to blow off some steam, he drives.

* * *

Glancing at the clock for the millionth time already, Damon has been tossing and turning since he got into bed. Before finally giving up for the night, he called her too many times to count. Just as he was about to try one last time, she texted him that she was going to sleep. It took every ounce of self control he possesses to keep himself from going to her. He even got so far as to get in his car when he remembered Caroline encouraging him to let her have the evening to herself. The only thing he wants to do, even at this hour of the night is to make love to her in every way her beautiful heart desires. Rolling onto his belly, he lays his head onto his folded arms and closes his eyes, hoping beyond hope that this time he'll be able to drop off to sleep for a couple of hours.

Hearing the alarm blare finally awakens him. Raising his head, he sees that it's almost eight thirty. Although he's relieved to finally have fallen asleep, he's now going to be late for work. The first thing he does is reach for his phone to see if there's anything from her. Dropping his head in dismay when there are no messages, he drops his face onto the mattress once more. After several seconds pass, he forces himself to get out of bed, calling Liz first to tell her that he overslept and will be a few minutes late. As soon as he takes a quick shower and dresses, he runs out of the house and into his car. Aside from the Elena debacle, he's lucky to hit almost every intersection on a green light.

After a quick check in at the office, he drives over to the police station at Brady's behest to go over some details of the train derailment. Despite trying to keep his mind busy with work, she's always, always there. She told him that she wasn't mad but she's not breaking down any phone lines to try to reach him either. As the morning bleeds into afternoon, he goes back to headquarters after having lunch with Brady at Perkins. Burying himself in his work, he doesn't leave his office, stopping only when he gets a call from security to come downstairs to sign for a package. When Damon asks why he can't sign it, Oscar tells him that the driver will only accept his signature. Frustration and lack of contact from Elena combine to put Damon in a rather lousy mood.

Rolling his eyes, he takes the stairs since it'll be quicker. Reaching the security station, he sees the Fed Ex man. Walking over to him, he says that he's Damon Salvatore and asks where to sign. As soon as Damon signs the electronic key pad, the man hands him the package. His eyes widen to the size of saucers when he sees Slater's name and address in his own handwriting in the top left corner.

* * *

 _Thank you Eva. Love you dearly._

 _Massive thanks to all of you. I appreciate you all so much._

 _Chapter title: 'Crossfire' by The Scorpions._

 _Be safe and have an amazing weekend. Thanks again and we'll see you next week._


	15. The Moment of Truth

Stunned and not quite believing what he has in his own hands, Damon takes it to his office. He's alone and his door is closed and yet he feels spooked. He finds himself unconsciously looking over his shoulders. _Come on Damon, don't be ridiculous._

Walking over the cupboards above his bookcases, he pulls out a pair of gloves. He carefully handles and peruses the package, not quite knowing what he should do right now. The detectives strongly suggested that he call them should he receive anything and yet if he does, they're just going to take it. If he doesn't hand it over, there will be hell to pay too. With the box safely in his grip, he walks over to the window. He sees the tiniest splatter of red when the sun hits the brown paper just right. Whether it's blood or not he doesn't know for sure but the possibility that it could be Slater's makes him feel a little queasy. Despite that, he absolutely needs to be able to listen to the recordings. Whether they'll reveal any new is doubtful but he won't know until he does get to hear them. As he stares at another robin picking at something in the grass, he notices a patrol car pass on the street in front of him. Immediately Brady comes to mind. Nodding to himself, he walks over to his desk, sets the box down and picks up his phone. Pushing his icon, he waits impatiently for his friend to pick up.

 _"Detective Williams."_

"It's Damon. I need you to get over here as fast as you can."

 _"What's going on?"_

"I'll explain when you get here but it's important."

 _"It better be, I have several reports that I need to work on."_

"Thanks Brady, I'll see you in a few," Damon says, clicking off the call. Dropping into his chair, he sets the package in his drawer. Although he tries to work on another file, his mind keeps drifting back to the brown paper wrapped box. Despite feeling like he's about to jump out of his skin, Damon knows there's nothing he can do but wait.

* * *

As luck would have it, Liz is gone for the afternoon. Because of that, all he can do is pace back and forth in his office. If not for access to the lab here at headquarters, he would've insisted on taking it down to police HQ. Thinking about it, he realizes that the police have labs too but they don't have the specialized equipment that deals with black box technology. Glancing up at the clock for the hundredth time already, Damon sighs heavily. Needing something, anything, Damon walks out of his office and down the hall towards the candy and pop machines. Putting in a few quarters, he pulls out a Snickers bar and an energy drink. He has a feeling it's going to be a long afternoon and evening too. By the time he gets back to his office, he looks up to see Brady rounding the corner and coming down the hall.

"I'm so glad you're here," Damon remarks, gesturing with his arm for his friend to walk in first. Damon follows behind then closes and locks his door. Reaching his desk in two rather large strides, he unlocks his desk and pulls the package out. He figures that the package has been handled by untold Fed Ex drivers already so it's likely contaminated with fingerprints already. "Do you know Detectives Parker and Martin?"

"Yeah...?"

"They were the ones who interviewed me, said if I hear anything or remember anything that I should give them a call. But if I give them this, I won't be able to get the information I need on the Gilbert case. I need to be able to listen to these tapes, Brady."

"So you call me when you're in trouble?" Brady teases, hoping to lighten the atmosphere a little.

"This is serious stuff. Slater was murdered. There's no way of knowing, at least not yet if they're connected but what if they are?" Damon asks, his grip on the box so tight that his nailbeds whiten.

"Chill, Damon. I know it's vitally important. I suppose we could call and tell them that a package arrived but that you need to listen to what's on them to complete your investigation. Perhaps they should be here too. That way neither of us gets into trouble."

"Can we listen first, call later?" Damon asks, not at all sure if those other men are trustworthy. "Are they good cops?"

"Yes, Damon, they're both very good men. But you're right, I suppose, they'll want to take possession of the box, likely they'll forward it back to the DC cops that are investigating the murder. So if you're going to be able to listen to the recordings, we better do it. I'm going to have to be with you so I know I can vouch for the chain of evidence."

"Of course. Why do you think I called you instead of them?"

"Let's do it," Brady adds, gesturing with his outstretched arm for Damon to lead the way.

* * *

Standing at the picture window, Elena looks outside. Taking a swallow of her tea, she focuses on a couple of crows that land on a close tree branch. Having slept very poorly last night, she reaches up to cover her mouth when a yawn threatens to escape. Damon's barb still echoes inside of her mind, it's all she could think about overnight. The rational side of her knows that he didn't mean to be cruel but it seems rather obvious to her that it still bothers him on some level. Dropping her head, she wonders where they go from here? Will he ever truly forgive her for the way they met? Raising her cup, she takes the last drink and walks into the kitchen to put it in the sink. With her hands gripping it, she stares into nothingness outside, her reverie broken when she hears Caroline's ringtone. Desperately in need of a distraction, she answers immediately. "Hi Care."

 _"I'm meeting my dad for lunch.. I was hoping that you would join us. I'm dying to introduce you."_

"Are you sure? I mean, wouldn't you prefer just the two of you?"

 _"No. Please, Elena, say yes?"_

"If you insist?" She laughs. "Where do you want me to meet you?"

 _"How about we meet at the café court in Park Meadows. We can have Subway or McDonalds or Chick Filet?"_

"That sounds great. I'll meet you in a half hour?"

 _"Perfect. See you soon, bye Elena."_

As soon as she clicks off the phone, she grabs her bag. Pulling the keys out, she locks her front door, jumps in her car and drives the familiar road that leads to the interstate exit. With traffic heavy, it takes her about forty five minutes to reach the mall. She parks her car as close to the Café court entrance as she can then walks inside. Looking around, she smiles and nods when she sees Caroline waving at her. As soon as she reaches them, she takes a seat. Caroline immediately introduces her father. Taking her hand, he shakes it vigorously, a big smile on his face.

"It's very nice to meet you, Elena. Caroline has been singing your praises endlessly," he laughs, winking at his daughter.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Mr. Forbes."

"Please call me Bill."

"Well, Bill," she says smiling, "Caroline mentioned that you know a lot about airplane manufacturing?"

"I do. I offered Damon my expertise to help with your father's case but he's not very forthcoming. He doesn't like me very much."

"Daddy, that's not true," Caroline protests, smiling tightly at Elena.

"Caroline, it is true," Bill adds, giving her hand a squeeze.

"Daddy?"

"It's okay, sweetheart. I've given him plenty of reasons not to like me. Don't worry about. Damon is nothing if not professional so I'm sure he'll accept my offer if he finds himself in a bind."

"I hope so. I'll give him a little nudge," Caroline says, smiling as her eyes drift from Elena to her dad. Soon the conversation veers into other topics. After choosing PF Chang, Bill gets up to order their meals, leaving Caroline and Elena to chat.

"I like him," Elena admits, giving her friend a wide smile.

"I was hoping you would. He's right, Damon doesn't like him. I'd love for nothing more than for them to get along. I do love them both so much but daddy is right, he wasn't always as attentive as he is now."

"I know, Care..., your dad admitted the same. Please take this in the spirit that it's offered but you have to stop pushing Damon. It seems obvious that your dad is trying to make an effort for your sake. When I see Damon again, maybe I'll bring this lunch up. Maybe he'll listen to me?"

"Speaking of Damon, you know he didn't mean it when he said that last night don't you?"

"I do but it seems to me that he hasn't forgiven or forgotten it yet."

"As much as I'd love to say that's not true, I honestly don't know what his thinking is about it. He hasn't brought it up to me for quite some time."

Before Elena can reply, Bill sets their food down. After he hands Elena her meal, she pours a little soy sauce on it then picks up her fork to eat. When they finish, Bill says goodbye, leaving Elena and Caroline to spend the rest of the day at the mall.'

* * *

In the end, Damon and Brady decide to drive over to the police lab first so the package can be dusted for fingerprints and let the officers obtain all the forensic evidence. With Martin and Parker in tow, they drive back to NTSB headquarters to listen to the recordings. Before doing so, Damon orders some sandwiches and coffee to be delivered, the four men eating quickly, all anxious to hear what's on the tapes. After stuffing the last bite of his sub sandwich in his mouth, Damon pulls out his phone for the millionth time. Still seeing nothing from Elena, he decides not to contact her either. What he's doing right now is so much more important to her in the long run. If something is on the tapes that is of interest, he'll call or drive out to see her.

Once they finish, they walk down the hall to the lab. Damon nods to Elijah, their expert on sight who replaced Slater when he moved to DC. "Okay boss," he replies, starting the recording. At first it's quiet, nothing out of the ordinary, just conversation between Captain Gilbert and his co-pilot.

Suddenly Captain Gilberts says, " _Something's wrong, the warning lights flashed on and off. I can only see half of the cameras."_ His voice is calm and professional. Then they hear noises. It sounds to Damon like he's pushing buttons and there's rumblings like he's going over protocol.

Just as suddenly the co-pilot, Finn Mikaelson, interjects, " _The system is shutting down_ ," followed by a series of loud clicks. Then he breaks in again, his voice frantic sounding, " _What are you doing? You can't possibly_?"

Captain Gilbert, his voice anxious but not frenzied, adding, " _It's the electronics. If we don't land now, we don't stand a chance."_ More clicking noises followed by popping sounds are heard. Oddly the next thing they hear is humming. It sounds like a child's song, " _I'm going to find you my Anelee, the song in my heart is my sweet Anelee."_ Anelee is the last word they hear before the cockpit sounds get so loud and thunderous that it drowns out everything else, making the rest of their conversation indecipherable. In the next moment there's a loud boom followed by the sound of metal grinding against metal before everything is eerily quiet, indicating the end of the recording, the end of the flight.

And just like that, everything falls into place for Damon. "I know what happened. I know what brought down Flight 1042." He rakes his hand though his hair, his gaze never leaving Elijah's hand on the instrument panel.

* * *

 _Thank you so much, Eva. I love you dearly and wouldn't be doing this without you._

 _Huge thanks to all of you. I just cannot begin to put into words how much your friendship and support means to me._

 _Chapter title: 'The Moment of Truth' by Survivor._

 _Please share your thoughts._

 _I hope you all have a phenomenal day. Thanks again and we'll see you next time._


	16. Fire On The Mountain

After listening to Slater's tapes repeatedly, Damon knows what happened aboard Flight 1042. Although he doesn't yet know what started it, he does know with absolute certainty that there was a fire in the plane's undercarriage which took out the avionics bay.

"Something is churning in the head of yours, Damon. What do you believe happened?"

"I think that there was a fire in which shut down the electrical system of the plane. Within a couple of minutes, the flight control units would have started to fail. With all of the electronics begging to shut down that quickly, Captain Gilbert had no choice but to try to land the plane immediately. I also believe that when the plane crashed into the mountain side, the ensuing fire sparked by a tank full of jet fuel destroyed most of the evidence. The black boxes were badly damaged, this is all Slater seemingly got out of them. But what I don't know is why I didn't get this data during the original investigation? With Slater dead, we obviously can't ask him the why's and what fors. I'm at a loss as to his motivations here."

"If there was foul play, this would certainly be a motive to silence him," Brady adds, staring at Damon intently.

"But the thing is Brady, we don't know if they're connected. We can't be sure of anything but it is enlightening," Damon adds, his mind a morass of suppositions and what ifs.

"No we don't but I intend to do some digging," Brady adds, nodding to the other two detectives.

Glancing down at his watch, Damon knows he can't drive over to Pellicos Aeronautics tonight. Even though he's going to have to wait till morning, he's already chomping at the bit. The men talk a little longer, the detectives taking possession of the original black box recordings. Elijah made copies for Damon along with a transcript. Since it's almost sundown, Damon lets them out, making sure the guards lock up the facility behind him. Cautioning them not to let anyone in under any circumstances, Damon walks to his car. Sliding in, he squeezes the wheel hard for a few seconds. Feeling fatigued but too edgy to sleep, he ignites the engine and drives home, a good stiff drink is the first thing on the agenda

* * *

As soon as he sets foot into his house, he marches directly to the kitchen. Pulling out a bottle of beer, he twists off the top then takes a deep pull, savoring the taste. Leaning against the sink, his mind is a whir of contradictory thoughts. He's so perplexed about Slater. He was a seasoned professional. Damon can think of no reason why he'd withhold such vital information. And what if his murder is related to this? If so, does that mean he was being blackmailed about something?

After emptying the bottle, he escapes to his bedroom. He kicks off his jeans, pulls his shirt over his head and then collapses onto the bed. Between glancing at the clock, staring outside and his cell phone, Damon knows what he has to do. He drags himself out of bed and puts his jeans back on. Stepping into his bathroom, he quickly puts on a clean tee shirt. Stooping over, he slips his Birks on his feet, grabs his car key and runs outside, pausing only to lock his front door. On the way, he pulls into a Walmart where he buys her a huge bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine. Although he's certain about his conclusion, he hates to get her hopes up only to knock her legs out from under her if another surprise drops in his lap. Still, he knows that she deserves to know the truth.

When he passes the sign for the Evergreen exit, he moves into the right lane, turning off of the interstate. When he reaches her street, he turns left and follows it down till her house comes into view. He breathes a sigh of relief when he sees that her light is still on. That doesn't mean she's awake though. Pulling into the driveway, he turns off the car and walks across her lawn to the front door. Raising his hand, he starts to rap it. All he can do is hold his breath in hopes that she won't slam the door in his face.

* * *

Having fallen into a restless sleep on her couch, Elena tosses and turns. She half expected Damon to show up or at least call her but sadly he didn't. Having lost track of how many times she's checked her phone, she finally turns it off, not wanting to lose anymore sleep over whether he'll be in touch or not. Although she knows she won't sleep any better in her bed, she gets up and turns off the TV. Just as she reaches the foot of the stairs, she hears a car pull up followed by a soft rap on her door moments later. Hoping that it's him, she hurries to answer it. Before opening it, she looks through the peep hole to make sure exactly who it is that is knocking at her door at one in the morning. When she sees those beautiful blue eyes of his, she unlocks it and steps to the side, allowing him to cross the threshold.

"I owe you an apology, Elena," he starts to say before she even has the door pushed closed, When she turns to face him, he hands her the bouquet of flowers.

"You didn't have to do this, Damon."

"Yes, I did. I was wrong to snap at you like that. I'm sorry. I have more to tell you about the investiga..," Before he can get the words out, she presses her fingers against his mouth, silencing him.

"I'm sorry too, Damon. I want you to know that I want whatever this is between us to continue. It's not the investigation Damon. I care about you."

"But Elena," he starts to retort when her palm silences him once more. Taking his hand, she leads him up to her room. Since she's already in her pajamas, she unbuttons his shirt, dropping it from his shoulders. After she unsnaps his jeans, he takes them off, leaving him only in his boxers. Pulling back the covers, Elena crawls in sliding over when he joins her. He covers them up. Once she's comfortably situated on her side, he wraps an arm around her middle, pulls her flush against his chest, buries his face in her hair then closes his eyes. After whispering goodnight, he closes his eyes and this time he falls into a blissful sleep knowing that he's at home with her in his embrace.

* * *

When he awakens the next morning, Damon very carefully gets out of bed. Glancing at his watch, he realizes he needs to get a move on so he isn't late for work. Stooping over, he brushes a kiss across her forehead then quickly dresses and tiptoes out of her bedroom. Stopping in the kitchen, he writes her a note explaining that he'll be back later, with food, as soon as he finishes up his work day. Once he's in his car, he pushes the button on his dash, triggering a call to Liz. After telling her that it's of utmost importance for him to have a few words with her, she assures him that she'll be in the office in about an hour. Hanging up, he quickly stops by his house, changes his clothes and then gets back in his car, hoping that the traffic won't be gruesome on the freeway which will hinder his getting to work on time.

As soon as he walks into the building, he goes directly to her office, pushing the door closed behind. Looking at him curiously, she watches intently as he pours himself a cup of coffee, taking a long slog before refilling it and sitting back down. Tapping the top of his mug with his fingertip, Damon contemplates where to start. He's about to open his mouth when she beats him to it.

"What is it?"

"I know what caused Flight 1042 to crash. Believe it or not, I had a package delivered from Slater. You were already out for the afternoon. I wanted to keep it tightly under wraps. I called Brady first and then the detectives. After we listened to them, I got Elijah to make some copies of the recordings, knowing of course that the police would take the originals. I'm wary of them showing up to take the copies too." Opening and closing her mouth a couple of times, she finally tells him to spill, wanting to know exactly what happened.

"So all this is happening right under my nose?" she chuckles a little despite herself.

Nodding, Damon then lays out what he knows. "There was a fire, taking out the electronics system. Captain Gilbert did the only thing he could do. I need to go to Pellicos Aeronautics to talk to them about the A320 Airbus."

"Do you want me to come along?"

"No, but I would like you to listen to the recording with me once more. I'd like your opinion too."

"Okay, let's go," she agrees. Standing up, she follows Damon to the lab where Elijah already has the copy keyed up and ready to play. Listening to it intently, Liz nods then tells Elijah to play it back once more. And having hearing Captain Gilbert and the Co-pilot, Finn Mikaelson's voices, Liz concurs with Damon about what he believes to be the causative factor in the crash.

"It's gnawed on me all night, Liz. Why would someone need to cover up the fact that there was a fire on the plane?"

"I agree completely that it started in the avionics bay but I'm as baffled as you are as to why the tapes would've been doctored. The recording we heard when the investigation was in its infancy is not the one that I heard in there. Something is very wrong here Damon."

"I know that, Liz. It scares me to think that maybe Slater was killed because of what's on that tape. Is this going to put all of us at risk too?"

"I don't know but we have the power to exonerate Captain Gilbert and our integrity begs us to correct the record."

"I know that Liz. I'm going to go over to Pellicos to talk to them. Do you want to come with?"

"I most certainly do," she adds, grabbing her handbag out of her top drawer. Together they walk outside and get into Damon's car. Pausing long enough to enter the coordinates into his GPS system, he pulls out onto the highway and drives northwest of Denver towards the Boulder exit. When the great big silver building comes into view, Damon exits off of the interstate, stopping only when he pulls into the parking lot. Jumping out of his car, he walks around and opens Liz's door. Together they walk into the building and to the reception desk. Damon flashes his NTSB credentials and moments later the president of the company appears inviting the two of them to have a seat in his office. It's not hard to see that the man is a little uncomfortable. Since Damon doesn't know what he's dealing with here, he tries to be matter of fact.

"I know all about the A320 Airbus, Mr. Stewart. I need to know about the electronic compartment, specifically the EFIS display."

"What is this about?"

"We've reopened the investigation into the crash of Flight 1042. We have reason to believe that we weren't given access to all of the information at the time of the crash."

"It was one of my planes that crashed and you didn't think it was of utmost importance that I know this?"

"Mr. Stewart, we just became privy to this information in the last forty eight hours."

"I'm sure you know that either a display unit works or it doesn't work. Failure is always obvious, never insidious. With today's technology, the monitoring function can be shifted upstream to the output of the symbol generator. Each one contains two display monitoring channels. One channel, the internal, samples the output from its own symbol generator to the display unit and computes, say for example, what roll altitude should produce that indication. The computed roll altitude is then compared with the roll altitude symbol generator. Any difference has probably been introduced by faulty processing and triggers a warning. The external monitoring channel carries out the same check on the symbol generator on the flight deck. The Captain's symbol generator checks the First officers, the First Officer checks the Captain's. Whichever sympbol generator detects a fault, a warning goes up."

"If there was fire, that would disable the EFIS system in mere minutes, leading the captain to have to try to make an emergency landing."

"Yes," he says, adding, "It would lead to catastrophic failure."

"Can we look at one of your A320's?"

"Follow me," he says, leading them out of the main building to the plant where some of his workers are in the process of building an airplane.

Watching as the men work on the undercarriage, Damon catches a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye. Turning to face Mr. Stewart, he asks, "Do you manufacture your own electronic components or do you purchase them from another company?"

"I buy all of those parts from an airline parts supplier." Mr. Stewart goes on to say that they buy them from a local company.

"I have a few more questions, if we could go back to your office?"

"Sure," he agrees, leading Damon and Liz back. After offering them a cup of coffee, Damon asks which company they purchase their electronics from. Opening his desk drawer, he pulls out a file and hands it to Damon. When the man nods that it's okay for Damon to open it, he does, the header on the purchase order confirming what he already suspected. The parts were manufactured by Silver Rose Aviation Parts and Manufacturing."

Reading the name twice, Damon now knows the rest of the story. Pointing it out to Liz, the two of them share an intense look. Handing Mr. Stewart back the file, he stands up and shakes his hand, thanking him for his assistance. With Liz at his side, the two of them drive back to the office. Both still in shock, Damon avoids Liz's stare. Rather he drives silently, his stomach churning painfully knowing that he has one more gentle heart to break.

* * *

 _I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. I've worked the last several nights. I sleep all day and then go right back to work because I work 12 hour shifts. It's just been a mass of chaos at the hospital, short staffed etc._

 _Thank you so much Eva. I love you dearly._

 _Huge thanks to all of you. You are all amazing._

 _Chapter title: "Fire On The Mountain" by Rob Thomas._

 _I would love to hear your thoughts._

 _I am going to bed now. Have a very safe and a very wonderful day._


	17. The Fighter

As soon as Damon parks his car at headquarters, he and Liz jump out and hurry into the building. When they reach Liz's office, she tells her secretary to get Mack on the phone and that they are not to be disturbed. Stepping inside, Liz starts a pot of coffee. Raking her hand through her hair, she finally turns to face Damon.

"How are we going to tell her, Damon?"

"We have to check to be absolutely sure before we call the police," Damon cautions, his own gut unsettled at the prospect of having to tell her.

"I know you're right but," she starts to say when she's interrupted by her secretary. "Mack is on the phone," she says via the intercom.

"Thank you, put him through."

 _"Hello, Liz. How can I help you?"_

"Damon is here with me Mack. He has some questions for you?"

 _"Of course. What do you want to know, Damon?"_

"I need everything you have on Silver Rose Aviation."

 _"The one that's located outside of Denver?"_

"Yeah, that's the one," Damon confirms, his eyes drifting to Liz.

 _"I'll do a little digging and then I'll get back to you."_

"I appreciate it, Mack. I don't care what time of the day or night. This is of paramount importance."

 _"Will do. I'll be in touch," he adds, then ends the call._

After staring at Liz for a few seconds, Damon shakes himself out of it. "I hope we're wrong, Liz."

"Me too, Damon, me too."

* * *

Elena awakens when the cat jumps on her belly, she laughs and scratches his ears and then stretches her own limbs. Feeling the empty bed next to her, she's a bit disappointed but she feels good this morning. When she happens to notice the clock, she realizes immediately why he's not still in bed. Throwing her legs over the side of the bed, she scrubs the sleep out of her eyes. Once her vision is clear, she goes directly to the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. After she dresses, she jogs down the stairs to make herself a pot of coffee. Finding his note, she holds it against her chest, a big smile forming on her face.

Noticing the wine he brought still on the countertop, she puts it in the refrigerator to chill it for this evening. Perhaps she should've let him speak his peace last night but she wanted, no she needed a bit of a respite from the drama of it all. Once she pours herself a cup of joe, she sits down in front of her computer to start doing a little work. As late morning bleeds into afternoon, she doesn't even realize what time it is till she hears her phone vibrate on the desktop. Picking it up, she smiles when she sees it's from him. _"Sorry, Elena. Change of plans. Something important at work. If you could get Nick and then come to my place. I'll message you again with the time. Have to go, D."_

Although a bit baffled by the cryptic message, Elena can do nothing. Rather than fret about what he's up to, she turns back to her computer and resumes typing.

* * *

When he finally gets home from work, although exhausted by the weight of everything he's learned today, Damon starts to prepare to have guests. Pulling a beer out of the fridge, he twists off the cap. Gripping it tightly, he takes a long pull, contemplating what he has to do tonight. He has to break her heart and it's killing him. He thinks back to the conversation with Mack after he called them back. Silver Rose Aviation has a connection to two other plane crashes. Just like Gray Gilbert's, one of the other crashes was attributed to pilot error too. That means that the investigation will have to reopened too but that's a problem for another day and that one belongs to another investigator. All of the crashes involve the A320 airbus. However, Damon knows Mr. Stewart is completely without fault. He bought Pellicos Airlines about a year after the Silver Rose components were installed into the doomed plane.

The defect would have cost _him_ too much to repair so he coerced Slater to doctor the black box recordings which is why Damon wrongly blamed the crash of flight 1042 on pilot malfeasance. After Mack confirmed their suspicions, he and Liz spent the afternoon at police headquarters with Brady and Detectives Martin and Parker.

An arrest warrant was being drawn up by the time he said goodbye to Liz to come home. He's shaken out of his reverie when he hears the doorbell. Closing his eyes, he sucks in a deep shuddering breath then forces one foot in front of the other till he reaches it. It's not like he hasn't had to deliver bad news before but it's personal this time. Opening the door, he steps aside so Caroline and her dad can walk in. After giving Caroline a hug, he shakes Bill's hand. Taking a breath, Damon tells them to go into the living room and to help themselves to a drink. He stays in the kitchen for a few moments. He knows what he has to do but he hates having to do it with her here. With his grip firmly on the neck of his beer bottle, he joins the two of them.

After sitting down, Damon takes another swallow of beer. With his focus on Bill alone, Damon starts up a conversation about the plane. "I was thinking a lot about the Airbus A320 today. What would make a seasoned pilot like Captain Gilbert feel that he had to land that plane immediately?"

"The plane didn't explode. Obviously he made an error in judgement, he probably thought he could land the plane but instead he crashed it into a mountain. He should've been able to find some flat land, a highway, a field anything. But for whatever reason, he ran out of time," Bill says, wondering where Damon is going with all of this.

"That's what I thought too, that is until Slater was killed. You also mentioned that the timing was suspicious. Why would he want the black box recordings to disappear and why would Slater take them? And who would want the real cause of the crash to stay hidden and never be revealed?"

"Sadly we'll never know because Slater is dead and the tapes have vanished," Bill points out, taking a long swallow of his vodka sour.

"That's not true though, Bill. The original, non doctored recordings were delivered to me at NTSB headquarters the other night. They tell a very different story," Damon puts forth, gripping the handle on his bottle tightly.

Now aware that there is somewhat of a pissing contest between Damon and her father, Caroline sits forward, her eyes darting back and forth between him and her dad. Standing up, Damon walks over to his tape player. After pushing the play button, he stares at Bill as the Captain Gilbert and First officer Mikaelson speak from beyond the grave.

"What are you doing, Damon?" Caroline asks, fear and confusion beginning to wash over her face.

Ignoring her, Damon moves in closer to Bill after turning off the player. "Now that you've heard that, Bill, what do you think caused the crash?"

With sweat beginning to bead on his brow, Bill snaps, "You and I both know what it probably was. What are you getting at, Damon?"

"The parts Bill, the parts were defective."

"So what are you saying? There are many, many manufacturers of those components."

"But those other companies didn't supply Pellicos Airlines, you did." Damon stares at him, his gaze now lethal in its intensity.

"The fact that my company built those components doesn't mean the accident was my fault or that I'm a murderer."

"Damon, stop it. What are you doing?" Caroline interrupts, still not quite comprehending what's going on here.

"No, Bill but you're the only one who knew that I reopened the Gilbert investigation by way of your daughter," Damon points out, giving Caroline a sympathetic look when he finally turns away from Bill for just a millisecond. "Then Slater called you because he knew that I was onto something."

"I don't even know Slater. You're fucking with the wrong person here, Damon," he sneers. "You have nothing, no proof and I am not going to sit here and listen to anymore of it." Standing up, he pushes Caroline aside but Damon gets in the way. "Don't hurt her!"

"Let me go," Bill snaps, giving Damon a well aimed shove, sending him flying into his glass topped end table, shattering it, the shard of glass piercing his skin. The noise and Caroline's cries set everything in motion. The detectives along with some uniformed officers flow into the room. Cutting off Bill's avenue of escape, they handcuff him and read him his rights. Seeing blood begin to pool near Damon, Caroline screams again and drops to the floor beside him. In the confusion of the moment, Damon's pain is such that he doesn't hear the wail of the ambulance siren. Running into the house, the EMT's hurry over to him. Dropping to their knees the men carefully roll him over. They all breathe a collective sigh of relief when they see it's only his arm that has been cut by the glass. Although it's obvious that he could use a few sutures, Damon refuses to go to the hospital. Caroline needs him right now. After one of them tapes his arm up and with Damon's assurance that he'll come to the ED later to have a doctor look at his arm, they leave.

In shock at everything that's transpired, Caroline collapses onto the couch behind her. She watches in shock as the police lead her father away. He doesn't so much as take a look back at her. When she hears footsteps, Caroline looks up.

"Miss Forbes, I'm Detective Saltzman. We'll be taking your father to the local precinct and then we'll try to have him extradited to DC where the murder took place."

"You think my father murdered Slater?"

"Mr. Forbes has the presumption of innocence of course but yes, he'll be arraigned on a murder charge."

Speechless, she nods and when she notices that the EMT's are through with Damon, she hurries over to him. "Are you alright?" Grimacing, Damon embraces her with his good arm.

"Are you?"

They share a moment but Damon knows she has yet to break down. Knowing it'll come when the shock wears off, the only thing he can do is be there for her. With all the tenderness he can find, he strokes her back to try to comfort her. Once they assure Detective Saltzman that they will come down to the precinct to give a statement, he takes off. Now alone, Damon refills their drinks and gives his dad and Liz a quick call to tell them that everything went well and that they're alright, well sort of alright. Lifting the tumbler to his lips, he swallows quickly, putting it down when the doorbell rings. This time, Damon's heart skips a beat in the best he sees her, he can breathe again. Pulling her into his arms, he lavishes her with an ardent kiss. Hearing footsteps approaching, he releases her just as Nik reaches the threshold.

"Come on in," Damon says, holding onto Elena's hand as if it's a lifeline. Leading them into the living room, he offers them drinks. Seeing Caroline on the brink of tears, Nik wastes no time in pulling her into his arms and letting her cry it out. Damon takes his place on her other side. Taking her hand with his good one, Damon gives it a squeeze. "I'm so sorry, Care. I wish I had been wrong about him."

Within a few minutes, Damon explains to Elena and Nick just what went down here tonight. When he finishes, Caroline turns her troubled eyes to his. "How can you be so sure?"

"Before I left the office, Detective Saltzman arrived from DC. Slater was killed in his precinct which is why he was assigned to the case. He told us that Slater had talked to Bill at least twice in the last month. Apparently Bill even made the mistake of visiting him at NTSB headquarters so they had a recording of him going into and out of the building. He also confirmed to us that your dad's company was having business and financial troubles. He couldn't afford to have the investigation reopened, it would ruin him."

"You have to be wrong. He wouldn't do this to me again, not again?" she cries, shaking her head back and forth in denial. Even with his arm hurting like a son of a bitch , he grimaces but lifts it around her anyway, pulling her close. Nik runs is hand down her back trying to do his part to soothe her too. When she regains her composure, she lets him go. But knowing how much Damon means to her, she leans up to press a kiss to his cheek. Before she loses it again, she takes Nick's hand and leads him up the stairs to the room she always stays in when she and Damon have their movie nights.

"I know you're exhausted but I have to know, Damon. Does all of this mean that my father wasn't to blame for the crash?"

"Yes, sweetheart, it means your dad did everything in his power to save Flight 1042." Their eyes meet for a few seconds. Damon leans in to press a quick kiss to her lips. Taking a breath, Damon picks up the small recorder. Confused, Elena stares at him. Then he pushes play, letting her hear her father's last words.. ending with the delicate melody.

" _I'm going to find you my Anelee, the song in my heart is my sweet Anelee."_

"Oh my God," she cries, pressing her fingertips against her lips, her other hand automatically covers her heart. Wrapping her in his arms, sling be damned, he presses a kiss to the top of her head.

"Is it you, Elena?" he whispers, breathing her in as he holds her flush against him.

"Yes, Anelee is me," she whispers, tears streaming from her eyes as she sinks to the floor. Never letting go, Damon sinks with her, loving her more with each to and fro as he rocks her back and forth.

* * *

 _We have the epilogue left._

 _Thank you my dearest friend and sister in spirit. I love you Eva._

 _I cannot even begin to thank you all for your amazing reviews and responses to this story. Eva and I really try to bring things fresh and new for you._

 _Chapter title: "The Fighter" by Keith Urban featuring Carrie Underwood._

 _I did post the "Tomorrow" prologue. I would love to hear your thoughts on it._

 _I have another 19th century piece and "This Isn't What We Meant" coming in the future._

 _Thank you again for all of your support. Be safe and have a fabulous weekend._


	18. Heat of the Moment

Walking up to her door with a bouquet of wildflowers that he picked himself, Damon starts to raise his hand to knock when she pulls the door open. With a wink, she latches onto his hand and yanks him into the house. Before he can utter a syllable, her lips are attached to his in a dreamy kiss. He's so enraptured by this vixen that his hand relaxes and his carefully picked flowers fall to the floor in a heap. When she finally releases him, Damon stumbles back slightly, a goofy look on his face.

"Wow," he exclaims breathlessly, lightly pressing his fingertips to his lips. It's then that she notices the flowers laying haphazardly on the floor. Laughing, she stoops down to pick them up. Following her into the kitchen, he leans against the stove and crosses his arms to enjoy the show. Her pert little behind is swinging side to side she arranges the flowers in a vase. Suddenly his jeans begin to feel uncomfortably tight.

Having had enough of her teasing, he steps behind her and drops his mouth to her long gazelle-like neck. While his lips are engaged, he lowers his hands, unsnapping her jeans and lowering the zipper. Now that there's room, he snakes his hand in, pressing his palm flush against her lower belly while his middle finger begins to tap on her clit. Moaning with desire, she starts to sway her hips in rhythm with his ministrations.

"You like that?" he whispers, pulling her earlobe into his mouth.

"Ah ha," she breathes, gasping when he plunges that same finger into her tight and already hot center. Wanting so much more, she pulls his hand out, spins around and kisses him with abandon while leading him towards the bedroom. She loosens her grip when she feels the back of her legs hit the mattress.

With a quirk of his brows, he kisses her fiercely and then pulls up a chair. Pointing to it, she looks at him curiously but does as he wants. He then disappears into her closet, returning momentarily with some of her nylon hose in his hands. She watches with rapt attention as he strings them between his fingers. With a salacious quirk of his brows, he leans over, first tying up her hands before doing the same with her ankles.

Although she's a little confused about what he's up to, she feels her body tingle with both a little fear and a little excitement. She breathes a little heavy when her lady parts begin to prickle and burn. Elena tries to rub her thighs together to quench the ache but with her ankles secured to the chair, she isn't having much luck. She closes her eyes when he runs his calloused fingertips wispily along the curve of her jaw, across her lush lips till she opens her mouth and sucks his finger inside. Using her tongue, she laves it seductively all the while keeping her eyes closed.

"Open your eyes," he orders, his own voice husky and full of desire. When she looks up, she sees that he's pointing a gun at her.

"Now we're even," he teases. With a wink, he aims the gun right at her and starts to squirt her with it. She starts laughing so hard that she literally shakes even though he keeps shooting, drenching her face.

"Let me out of here now so we can get back to more important things," she demands, slowly running her tongue along her lips. With his length hard and aching, he quickly frees her from her makeshift restraints.

With a twinkle in her eyes, she makes short work of first his shirt and then his jeans when she lowers them to the floor. Her eyes are brimming with unbridled lust when she takes him into her hot, moist mouth, doing things that make his belly twist and churn with intense desire. His eyes are fixed on hers as she takes more and more of him inside. Shivering when his cock hits the back of her throat, he tangles his fingers in her hair and thrusts in and out of her mouth, his own moans music to her ears. When she strokes that spot at the perineum with her fingernail, he explodes, her name spilling from his mouth as if he's praying to the deity.

He almost goes off a second time when he sees her licking her lips. "That was... incredible," he breathes, pulling her into his arms. Since he's standing bare, he quickly divests her of her clothes before picking her up, gently laying her on the bed. He doesn't want to waste a second with her so he quickly settles his face between her legs. Using his mouth, teeth and his _oh so_ skilled tongue, he laps and twists and bites on her clit, finally ducking his tongue inside, her hips rise and fall with each plunge of his it. It doesn't take long for her belly to twist and heat up, her orgasm blowing through her like a tsunami.

When she can see again, she drops her eyes only to see him grinning like the Cheshire cat. With her strong arms, she pulls him up and attacks his mouth, tasting herself as she pushes her tongue inside. When her lips start to blaze a trail of heat across his jaw and up towards his ear, she whispers in her husky voice, "I want you, Damon, all of you."

Unable to deny her anything, he marvels at the same raw and hungry look that mirrors his own. Easing himself over her, he's still amazed to feel her tremble beneath him. Feeling her nails rake across his back, he drops his mouth to her breast, savoring and paying homage to each one. Now he's as hard as he's ever been and in dire need to plant himself inside of her.

After stealing yet another scorching kiss to her lips, he reaches over to his bedside stand to pull out a condom, her eyes feverish as he hands it to her. Feeling heat radiating from every pore in her body, her fingers shake as she rolls it on his turgid length. Damon can't stop his heart from racing out of control when he sees wanton desire staring back at him. Wanting to claim his mouth, Elena pulls him towards her. As soon as he feels his cock slide against her warmth, there are no doubts left in his mind.

"I love you, Elena," he breathes and in the next second, he slides forward and into the sheer perfection that is her body. Her breath rushes out of her in a gasp and at the same time he feels her knees squeezing against his hips.

"Yes, like that, Damon...," she pants, her voice raspy. Even though he's barely made a move, his body reacts viscerally, knowing that she's the _one_. Nearly drunk with pleasure already, he can't stop himself from pushing forward, driving into her just the way she likes it. Biting her lip to stifle a moan, Elena's eyes fly open when he shifts, hitting her sweet spot. Their gazes lock and in this moment, she knows that this is right, that he's the _one._

She wraps her legs around his waist and when she does, he slides his hand under the small of her back to tilt her hips enough to control the angle of his well aimed trusts. He knows he hits his mark when she cries out, her voice sounding hoarse and desperate. Even knowing it won't be long, Damon keeps up the rhythm. When he feels her starting to grip him even tighter, he slows down to try to make it last. She wants to watch him reach oblivion so as hard as it, Elena keeps her eyes peeled on his as she matches him thrust for thrust. Damon rocks back on his heels and with his hands still at the small of her back, he drags her upright somehow managing the impossible of not slipping out of her body.

Hanging on for dear life, Elena groans as he pushes deeper inside of her than ever before, repeatedly hitting that spot that leaves them both trembling. When their eyes meet, Damon sees tears in them. With his prone hand, he laces it under her hair to clutch the back of her neck, pulling her forward to join her mouth to his. When they part, Damon struggles to catch a breath as she begins to rise up down along his length. Wanting her impossibly closer, he drops his mouth to her throat, licking and nipping at her sweat dampened skin. Elena begins to grind against him hard and with purpose. Burying his face in her shoulder, he grunts against the curve of her neck when he feels himself slipping over the edge. Heat and electricity grip his body and suddenly he erupts in fiery explosion pulling Elena into paradise right along with him.

Chill bumps break out on his skin as she milks his body dry. When he finally finds the energy to lift his face from her shoulder, he's literally speechless. Elena smiles, running her fingers through his sweat drenched hair breathlessly murmuring gibberish in the aftermath of their lovemaking. Unable to take his eyes from her beautiful face, he can only whisper, "I love you, Elena." Given the boneless state of her body, she reaches up to cradle his cheeks, "I love you too."

* * *

"How is Caroline doing with all of this?" Elena asks, looking out of the car window as Damon drives through town on their way to Elena's mom's house. After they pick her up, they're all going to spend the weekend at his father's ranch. She intends to hold Damon to the promise he made to take her hiking.

"Liz told me that they don't have a trial date set yet. It wasn't just Slater that was killed, a lot of people died as a result of his actions so he'll probably go to jail for the rest of his life if he's convicted. Brady told me that while they were looking into Silver Rose's records, tests were manipulated. Bill knowingly sold defective parts which led to your dad's crash and one other one."

"I want him to get what he deserves but I feel bad for her."

"It's been hard for her to accept but she's okay. He won't allow her to visit him. Personally I'm glad about that. That man has caused her and Liz so much pain. At least if he's stuck in jail, he won't be able to do it anymore. I know that's harsh but you weren't around when he was yanking her chain only to pull the rug out from under her."

"She has a lot of people who care about her," Elena comments, lacing her fingers with his when he offers it. "Plus she and Nick are doing well."

Lifting her hand, he presses his lips to it and then sets it back down. Although his eyes are focused on the road in front of him, he can't help but be amazed at finding the love of his life after staring down the barrel of the cocked pistol that she had pointed at him all those months ago.

When they reach Miranda's house, Damon turns into the driveway. Before Damon can even jump out of the car, Lexi is pushing her mother's wheelchair over to them. Very carefully, Damon lifts Miranda into the back seat then brings her legs around. Then he folds up her chair and sticks it in his trunk.

"I'll see you later, Lexi," Miranda tells her, giving her trusted aide a hug.

"Bye Lexi," Elena adds, waving at her. Once Miranda secures her seatbelt, Damon ignites the engine, backs out of the driveway. As soon as he shifts into drive, he heads for the interstate.

* * *

"Do you have to go?" Caroline asks, her arm linked with his.

"We have to take Miranda home." Stopping in his tracks, Damon looks over her shoulders, a smile forming when he sees Elena, Nick and Miranda visiting with his dad and Liz. Pulling his sister into his arms, he drops a kiss to the top of her head.

"Are you okay? You've been a little subdued this weekend."

"It's been a hard pill to swallow. He won't even see me."

"I wish there was something I could do to make it easier for you."

"You do that just by being my brother. I love you, Damon," she says, dropping a quick kiss to his cheek. When Elena turns, her eyes meet his from across the way and yet Damon feels all the magnetism and electricity that arcs between them. Taking Caroline's hand, the two of them join the others. She frees herself from Damon's grip then takes her place with Nick, pressing a long kiss to his lips. When they part, Damon whistles and the rest applaud, when she reveals the bauble that's now gracing her left ring finger.

Damon wraps Elena in his arms. Although he doesn't say anything, he knows that one day soon, the whistles and applause will be sounding for the two of them.

* * *

Once they drop Miranda off, Elena whispers something in her ear before she and Damon leave. Miranda watches, smiling as they drive away. She's very proud of her daughter's tenacity. She was relentless in trying to prove her father's innocence and despite all the odds against her, she did it. Now she's taking Damon there, the place she's always gone to alone.

As soon as Damon pulls to a stop, Elena raises her eyes, sharing a look with him. When he nods, they get out of the car, Elena reaching into the backseat to pick up the flowers that they bought. Taking her hand in his, they walk down the path, veering off towards his grave.

Raising her hand, she points it out to Damon. Before they go to see him, Elena leads him over to her brother's grave, introducing him to Jeremy. After she spends a few minutes with him, Elena smiles and takes Damon's hand again. Feeling him squeezing her other one, they walk the rest of the way, stooping onto the ground when they reach it. Damon lays the flowers in front of the stone. He runs his fingers over the top, says his respects and then gets up to give her some privacy with her dad.

"Don't go, Damon." Nodding, he moves to stoop beside her once more. "Daddy, this is Damon. He's the one who cleared your name."

"Captain Gilbert, as much as I'd like to take credit, it was really your daughter who put all of this in motion. I'm sure you are proud beyond measure but you should know that you raised an amazing woman." Damon takes her hand and he presses a kiss to it. "I am irrevocably in love with her sir." He then stands up and steps back so she can say a few words to him.

"I love him, daddy," she whispers. "You did everything you could to save that plane. You can rest in peace now, daddy. I'll see you soon." Leaning forward, she presses a kiss to his image burnished into the stone. After taking a deep breath, she stands up. Laying her hand on top of his stone, she rubs it softly then makes her way back to Damon. Leaning up on her tiptoes, she gives him a quick kiss. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he holds her close for a few minutes. When their eyes meet, she smiles and says, "Let's go home."

* * *

 _And that's all there is._

 _Thank you all so very much. I appreciate each and every one of you. The DE family is the best their is._

 _And Eva, what can I say. I love you dearly. I would close up shop without you._

 _Chapter title: "Heat of the Moment" by Asia._ _"Tomorrow" and "Edge of Thorns" are still in progress._

 _If you've never reviewed, this is your last chance while it's in progress. Eva and I really try to come up with new and different DE stories. Thank you all for taking this journey with us._

 _Be safe and have a phenomenal day. And thank you so much for all of your reviews and support for this version of Damon and Elena._


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